A recent Spectrem Group study, Advising the Affluent LGBT Investor,  reveals that less than two thirds of LGBT investors have a living will, or a will and testament. Sixty-three percent have a will and testament, but only 54 percent have a living will, which helps determine who will make decisions should one partner become incapacitated or require long-term care.

The percentages for LGBT ownership of estate planning products does increase with wealth, but never reaches the levels of the non-LGBT investors. For instance, among the wealthiest investors, with a net worth between $5 million and $25 million Not Including Primary Residence, 72 percent of LGBT investors have a will, but 91 percent of non-LGBT investors have a last will and testament.

Among the LGBT Investors with a net worth between $100,000 and $1 million, only 47 percent have a living will and only 56 percent have a last will and testament.

Older LGBT investors are more likely to have a last will or testament than younger ones, by a large margin. Eighty-percent of LGBT investors over the age of 64 have a will or testament and 64 percent have a living will. Of LGBT investors under the age of 45, only 38 percent have a living will and 36 percent have a last will or testament.

By comparison, a Spectrem study of all investors showed that 85 percent of Millionaires with a net worth between $1 million and $5 million have a will, and 91 percent of Ultra High Net Worth investors with a net worth of over $5 million have a will established.

In the Spectrem LGBT study, 50 percent of investors reported having a durable power of attorney document filed. A similar number (49 percent) had acquired the necessary health care proxy paperwork.

 

 

For more information on the LGBT report, click here