Breaking the Cycle: How Planned Giving Can Strengthen Intergenerational Philanthropy

Published: August 31, 2026

The Great Wealth Transfer is usually framed as a question of scale. How much money will change hands? Who will inherit it? And where will that money ultimately go?

The numbers are enormous. Cerulli Associates estimates that $124 trillion will transfer through 2048, with $105 trillion flowing to heirs and approximately $18 trillion going to charity. For nonprofits, the size of the transfer raises another question: Will the values, relationships, and philanthropic commitments connected to that wealth transfer with it?

Too often, the answer is no.

Assets can move relatively seamlessly from one generation to the next. The relationships surrounding them are harder to carry forward. Nonprofits spend years, sometimes decades, building relationships with donors and understanding why they give. But when wealth passes to a spouse or child, much of that history can be left behind.

Planned giving gives nonprofits a chance to change that trajectory.

When Wealth Transfers but Relationships Don’t

Consider how wealth moves through families. Cerulli estimates that $54 trillion will first pass between spouses before eventually transferring to heirs and charities. Over the next decade, Gen X will inherit the greatest share of assets, while Millennials are projected to inherit the most over the next 25 years. For nonprofits, that means the first relationship at risk may be much closer than the next generation.

Yet many nonprofit relationships still center on one donor. We know why that donor gives, what they care about, and what has kept them connected to the organization. We may know considerably less about the spouse, partner, or family that will eventually inherit their wealth.

That gap is easy to ignore while the donor relationship is strong. When assets transfer to a spouse, children, or other heirs, the context behind a donor’s philanthropy can be lost. Their family may know that they gave without knowing why a particular cause mattered so deeply to them. A relationship cultivated over decades becomes one the organization must rebuild. Planned giving creates an opportunity to begin that work before the transfer happens.

How Planned Giving Can Break the Cycle

Planned giving is often treated as the final stage of a donor relationship: the conversation that comes after years of annual giving, major gifts, and involvement with an organization. In the context of the Great Wealth Transfer, these conversations need to happen earlier and accomplish more.

Donors are already thinking about what will pass to family, what will go to charity, and what they want their wealth to accomplish after their lifetime. A conversation about a planned gift can explore those decisions more fully. Fundraisers should be asking questions like:

• Why has this organization remained important to the donor?
• What do they hope their giving will make possible?
• What do they want their family to understand about why they gave?

Planned giving can create an opening for these conversations. When a donor wants to involve their family, nonprofits have an opportunity to begin getting to know the people who may eventually inherit their wealth.

Building Relationships That Can Outlast the Transfer

Here are four approaches that fundraisers can take to forge relationships that extend beyond the individual donor and ensure continued support once their assets are passed on.

1. Start by understanding who is already part of the donor’s philanthropy. Who do they make giving decisions with? Is a spouse or partner involved? Do their children or grandchildren know the organization or why it matters to them? Before reaching out to the next generation, understand the inroads that might already exist.
2. If a donor wants to involve their family, give them opportunities to know the organization before asking them to support it. Bring them to see the work. Introduce them to leadership. Give the donor space to share why they have stayed involved. Familiarity comes first.
3. Then, get to know each family member individually. A child or grandchild may care about different issues, prefer different ways of engaging, or make entirely different philanthropic choices. Learn what matters to them and allow their relationship with the organization to develop from there.
4. Document what you learn in your CRM. Record who participates in giving decisions, which family members have engaged with the organization, what interests they have expressed, and anything the donor has shared about how they would like their family involved. That information should also travel across teams; planned giving, major gifts, and stewardship staff should share an understanding of who is part of the relationship and how they have engaged with the organization.

The Bottom Line: Be Part of the Transfer

Nonprofits have spent decades building relationships with the donors at the center of the Great Wealth Transfer. These are donors whose motivations we understand and whose trust we’ve earned.

There is an opportunity now to build on those relationships. Planned giving can help donors think intentionally about the role philanthropy will play in what they leave behind and open the door to family members who may one day carry that wealth forward.

There is no guarantee that the next generation will give in the same way, or to the same organizations. But waiting until the transfer happens almost guarantees that nonprofits will mean starting over. The work needs to begin while the relationships are still intact.

Orr Group partners with nonprofits to provide proactive planned giving strategies, management, and training. Get in touch to learn more about how we can help your orgsanization secure intergenerational suppoirt.

Joanna Kadieva is a Director at Orr Group. She brings over 11 years of experience in nonprofit fundraising, with a proven track record of building sustainable revenue streams and donor relationships across diverse sectors, including nonprofit news, environmental advocacy, higher education, and cultural institutions.