To think it’s unfair that some people get inheritance while others start with nothing?

I actually sort of agree with you, as I think lots of people (in my social circle at least..) just sit waiting on inheritances instead of grafting and making a good income themselves. I also think there’s a lot of people in this generation who are negative towards anyone who goes out and make a good income (especially in things like finance).. but those same people are more than happy to accept inheritances from relatives (who likely made their money in similar professions).

I don’t think inheritances need to be taxed more, but I do think the general attitude of relying on inheritances instead of working hard (and accepting that if you want more money, you need to make certain sacrifices - whether to your principles, time, etc) is irritating and lazy and hardly encouraging of a productive economy. My parents worked hard for their money and it’s their choice what to do with it- if they want to spend it all enjoying their retirement, more power to them!

It is unfair.
I was struck at lunchtime today by a conversation I was having with a group of four friends. All of us middle class and comfortable. Two of the four of us expect to inherit nothing (one already has inherited nothing in fact). One of us will inherit a useful tho not massive amount. And one of us has inherited an absolutely humongous amount.
I do favour greater IHT as it happens - on larger inheritances. I don't believe we should drop the thresholds. The humongous amount has already paid out a lot in IHT - but could have borne far more and still left a huge pot of estate.

Sorry OP but I think most of us who have lost parents especially those as children or while young adults would much rather have the parent or parents they have lost than an unlimited pot of money . I'm unsure if you have yourself lost one or both parents however if you have not then its something you wont understand until you do.
I lost my dad before I'd even turned 30 and I'd do anything to have more time with him rather than inheritance he set up for me and my siblings. We didn't have a vast amount growing up but he always did his best for us and therfore set up various things to make things a little easier for us.

Well I’d far rather my dh was alive and well than to have benefited from his death in service payment.

Ive used it to pay for my day to day living expenses (as well as working part time) as since he’s died my own health has suffered badly.

ive spent most of my adult life in poverty wishing i had a lump of money to help me on my way.

Be careful what you wish for.

This happened to my grandmother, 5 years in a care home and nothing left from a £375k house sale. The cost of care is astronomical and to be honest I didn’t feel the level of care was very good. Every penny was gone - served in the RAF during the war, widowed and a single mother to 3 children under 8 years old, didn’t get the widows pension because she chose to work - the widows pension wasn’t enough to survive with 3 children. Eventually worked hard enough to buy her own home which wasn’t a council scheme so paid market rate.

It’s not that everyone wanted the inheritance. My aunt looked after her for a few years prior but became exhausted by her decline with dementia. My parents were still working to pay their mortgage as was my uncle. We hated that she was in that place, but what else do you do? Had she known every penny would be spent she probably would have killed herself, a life’s very hard work for a fairly poor level of care. It was a cruel illness and hard to watch.

My father passed last year. At the end he was asking us to end it, couldn’t move, couldn’t eat, couldn’t breathe without an oxygen tank. My mum is now alone, it’s a struggle for her without him. There is so much more to life than inheritance, if someone gets it good for them but I would have my dad back any day.

@blackheartsgirl I am sorry for your loss. But I also have a friend whose DH died and left her with nothing. Her life is hard as she had to get back to work asap/

With some threads, I make a bet with myself as to whether there will ever be a second post from the OP.

I very rarely lose.

You want to take the money I've saved while also paying into the system? How do you propose to furnish my daughter with all the takeaways I didn't buy, holidays i didn't go on, alcohol I didn't purchase? Because your theory is that everyone should have the same starting point.

How much have people without an inheritance to pass on paid into the system?

@PlopSofa Nor me! My mistake. I’m giving my wealth to my DCs and hopefully you won’t affect me. We worked for it and the government is not taking it.

That's not her problem, though, is it?

Sad as it is for your friend, that doesn't mean that others should be left with nothing as well, does it?

Fucking crab bucket mentality.

Where did I say it was their fault? Sorry what do I need to keep up with?

When I die I want to leave whatever I have to give to my DD because I love her and want to bequeath her some financial stability - it probably won't be much but I earned it, no-one else, and it's MY choice what I do with it.

My DH has terminal cancer and is hell bent on making sure that everything he has passes on to me, because it brings him comfort to know I will be provided for as much as he is able to. It is one of the few things he feels he has any power over anymore and it gives him peace knowing that he has done his best to look after me. That's HIS choice, it's HIS stuff, he chooses what to do with it, no-one else. He earned it, it's his decision where it goes.

I actually don't agree with inheritance tax at all - for the government it's money for nothing and has a whiff of grave robbing about it it. Why don't they just prise the rings off people's cold dead fingers while they're at it! I think it's vile. When I die my choice would be for every penny of mine to go directly to my daughter, I wouldn't want the government to get a single penny of it, but they take that choice away by force - this is money they have already taxed of course.

And I bet you still have access to running water and your own toilet, which is more than half the world. What savings are you making to contribute to that problem, or is it just poor you?

Life is not fair. But it is what it is.
For the next 20 years inherited wealth is forecasted to be the defining factor in your overall wealth, not how much you earn.

And yes, I am surrounded by wealthy parents and children, but jealousy is not a reason to strip them of what they have.

ifs.org.uk/articles/inherited-wealth-course-be-much-more-important-determinant-lifetime-resources-todays-young

She did not say it was her problem? She said that others must deal with loss and no inheritance or even money issues too....

It is not jealousy. I actually think all income should be taxed at the same rate as salaries. That includes IHT. But with a generous exemption for married couples.

Doesn’t sound like jealousy, nope.

There is an issue with the fact that your chances of owning a property and future wealth depends if your parents own and if they help you. That's more important than salary for most and that's not particularly productive or motivating for young people.

Why should income be taxed so much more than wealth?

Most of your life chances depend on who your parents are. Wealth is a big one if they are together and stable is another... many factors. That information we can do with what we wish.

The problem is so much wealth is tied up in property and we have intergenerational inequality regarding property.

Obviously it's not 'fair'. You can't choose your parents, after all.

My three kids have inherited a very decent amount, enough to help them buy property.

For that, they had to lose their dad.

When I die, they'll get the house.

After how many decades of working, would you rather we left our kids with nothing, possibly reliant on the state?

@OutsideLookingOut I think you need to look at the bigger picture. My parents didn't need help from their family to buy a property in London in the 80s, they didn't even need 2 salaries.
We have an ageing population, services desperately needing money & young people already looking to emigrate because of wage stagnation, high taxes etc. We should not be exacerbating it.

Yes it’s unfair.

Most of the people I know who are on the property ladder are there because they inherited money or their parents did and were able to buy.

But then it’s also unfair when someone comes from a home with parents who have good jobs.
They get to do extra curricular activities and have more experiences growing up. They get help with uni, driving lessons, buying their first home etc whilst other parents are struggling to afford their own bills, let alone helping their kids out.

I don’t think coming from a wealthy family should be penalised but they should see his privileged they are.

And more needs to be done to help those that aren’t as privileged.
E.g. Making it easier to get onto the housing ladder, having a restriction on private rent costs, increasing wages to reflect the cost of living etc