Younger millionaires want ideas, not edicts

Younger millionaires are far more likely than comparable baby boomers to use a financial adviser, but they are looking for a much different experience. Nearly three in four millionaire boomers rely on their advisers for investment advice, but younger millionaires — Millennials and Generation Xers — are far more likely to come up with their own investment ideas, according to the 2013 Fidelity Millionaire Outlook Study. Three out of five younger millionaires do their own investing and use their advisers for a second opinion, according to the survey of 542 U.S. investors with at least $1 million in investible assets. “They're looking to collaborate,” Bob Oros, executive vice president of Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services, said of younger investors. “It's a real change in the relationship between advisers and clients,” he said. “They're not just going to wait around for a quarterly statement.” That means advisers courting wealthy younger people need to shift their focus to more-long-term planning goals, which isn't as simple as it sounds, given their lofty spending habits and saving goals. The survey found that younger millionaires are more likely to own a second home, a boat and a country club membership, and not only plan annual international trips but to fly first class, as well.

BIG DONORS

In short, “they spend a lot,” Mr. Oros said. But don't mistake their lavish spending for greed. The survey also found that 68% of younger millionaires want to pass on as much of their wealth as possible to their heirs, a goal that just 52% of millionaire boomers share. Younger millionaires also donate an average of $54,000 to charity a year. Perhaps one of the reasons that younger millionaires have bigger spending and saving aspirations is simply that they are better off than millionaire boomers financially. The average younger millionaire has $5.7 million in investible assets and an annual income of $677,000. Boomers, on average, have $5.2 million in investible assets and $198,000 in annual income, according to the survey. And despite their bad experiences, including two stock market crashes, the younger set also has a much sunnier outlook than millionaires who are nearing, or in, retirement. Younger millionaires have a favorable financial outlook, according to the survey, while boomers rank their outlook as neutral.