Young investor priorities:
Why charitable planning matters

What do Millennial and Gen Z investors expect from their financial advisors? A Fidelity Charitable report has found that, beyond portfolio management, they’re seeking guidance on how to fulfill their personal goals, purpose, and legacy—and that includes charitable planning.

Sound investment management is assumed with a financial advisor, but a 2022 Fidelity Investor Insights survey found that Millennial (also known as Gen Y) and Gen Z investors ages 21-41 are looking to their advisors for support well beyond the traditional portfolio. Compared to their Baby Boomer+ counterparts (age 58 and over), these young investors are twice as likely to view their advisor’s support in achieving their life’s purpose and leaving a legacy that benefits the world as a valuable part of the investor-advisor relationship.

As their wealth and financial complexity grows, the number of advised young investors may continue to grow, too. And as Boomers+ age and continue to transfer their wealth, young investors can be a key growth opportunity for advisors. Now is the time for advisors to connect with this promising demographic and nurture these relationships in a meaningful way—leading with impact, purpose, and philanthropy.

Advisors can help meet these needs by providing more holistic financial expertise, including charitable planning. In fact, many younger investors are already working on charitable giving with their advisor: Gen YZ investors are almost three times as likely as  Boomer+ investors to say that their advisor is helping them achieve their charitable giving goals.

More highlights from the report include:

• Fifty-nine percent of young investors want or expect their primary financial advisor to provide services beyond financial advice and investment management, compared to just 25% of Boomers+.
• Seventy-one percent of Gen YZ agree that their advisor helps them think through the type of legacy they’d like to leave behind in the world.
• One in three young investors ranked “help me achieve my life’s purpose” in their top five factors that are most important in determining the value of a paid financial advisor.
• Young investors are twice as likely as Boomers+ to say that they would like to work with a financial advisor who helps them with their charitable giving goals.

For more findings from the report, read the detailed results.