Future inheritance

Luckycharm_2

Hi everyone

I would be grateful if someone here could offer an opinion on a situation I'm having just now.

I'm self-employed in a job I love. My partner has a health condition and can't work. With me bringing in the only income, things are tight and will be for the foreseeable future although my job is well paid and if I manage to generate more work things will be better. We're solvent but only just and I spend a bit of time over on debtfreewannabee where I'm trying to get £8k of debt busted for good.

For years my mum has been talking to me about her will and how the inheritance will be divided. I usually ignore her as all I can hear her say is 'one day I'll be dead'. Quite unthinkable. She's only 65.

The other day she tried talking to me again and I've realised that one day I will inherit a significant amount of cash. Somewhere in the region of £250k.

As someone with a longstanding poverty mentality and pride in managing on very little, I'm not quite sure what to make of this. I've been planning for my future, looking forward to the new pension scheme starting in a couple of years, trying to bust the debt to get savings on the go and suddenly I feel like 'what's the point? Someone's going to hand all this to me on a plate one day.' Me and my OH can't buy the house we're in as it will never be for sale but I was considering buying to let elsewhere to try and generate rent for my retirement.

I know this sounds really stupid but I feel like my plans are all turned on their head and I don't quite know what to do now. I should be skipping with happiness but I'm not. I feel deflated and like the challenge I hung on to of creating a secure financial future for myself is pointless.

Anyone got any experience of this or am I just being daft?

Thanks so much for your replies.

LCx

sagalout1954

Er, you are being a bit daft!

She's 65 & hopefully it could be years before you get a single bean, so the challenges you speak of now still exist.

It isn't pointless to continue to try to secure your future yourself, perhaps you are looking at this from the wrong angle. Eventually you MAY inherit a tidy sum, but anything could happen between now and then and you may inherit naff all.

You (rightly) want the satisfaction of being master of your own future, working for it yourself - what can be more rewarding. Carry on exactly as you are and continue to be proud of yourself. Any eventual inheritance will be a mere 'bonus' to add to whatever you have made for yourself - a gift from your Mother. Sad to view it with a negative spin (it'd be like waiting for her to die to secure your future).

dzug1

She may well have spent it all by the time she dies. A few years in a nursing home will soon run through it.

She could remarry and everything will go to her new husband if she doesn't make a new will and he has a good case for a large share even if she does.

You could have a falling out and everthing gets left to the cats' home

As Sagalout says - don't count on it. There's no way you can say these things won't happen.

pollypenny

Good grief - talk about counting your chickens, LC.

Carry on in the careful way you are doing now and any inheritance will be a bonus - when and if it comes!

Good luck with your job.

zygurat789

Both my mother and father are 95 you may have a long wait and if your mother has to go into a retirement or nursing home there may very well be little of that amount left.

Savvy_Sue

What they all said ...

By all means let your mum talk about what she wants to do, encourage her to make a will if she hasn't yet or it's out of date and no longer in line with what she wants, but do NOT count those chickens.

Have a look at this thread for ideas about other worthwhile topics of conversation with your mother when she raises the subject. Not the money, but the practical arrangements.

Luckycharm_2

Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to reply. You've helped me a lot.

I think I've been trying to find a way to incorporate this inheritance into my lifetime financial plan. Every penny that comes into my home is accounted for and I hate when money is wasted due to bad planning.

However, the point I've been missing is that I don't have this cash yet and may indeed never have it. I wish my mum would spend more on herself...she won't even retire from her job when she can clearly afford to and deserves the break. (But that's a different story!)

Like you have all suggested, the thing to do is carry on as I am and forget about this inheritance. If it ever arrives I'll figure out what to do with it then. If it doesn't then I've lost nothing.

Thank you all again. :beer:

Savvy_Sue

This money should NOT feature in your financial planning, as I think you realise.

But you could introduce your mum to the concept of SKIing (Spending the Kids Inheritance). We have a thread about that too, usually near the top ...

jennihen

Aahhh - SKIing - I get it now! Whats Skating then?

jem16

jennihen wrote: »

Aahhh - SKIing - I get it now! Whats Skating then?

Spending Kash And Totally Enjoying Results.

Luckycharm_2

Hee hee!!! :rotfl:I LOVE the idea of encouraging her to spend it all! I can just picture the look of shock and disapproval on her face! What a challenge for her that would be.

I bought her a book about retirement not so long ago. It wasn't a big heavy duty one about practicalities, it was light and fun and full of good ideas about exciting and interesting things to do once your paid working life is over and you've moved on to a different stage in life. i.e. taking it easy and doing exactly what you want 'cos you've earned it. She read it and decided not to bother!

Thanks again for all your help. This has definitely been put in perspective for me now. I think I just had an initial shock of 'oh my god, how will i ever manage that amount of money?' It's obvious now I really don't have to even think about it yet or possibly ever. Brilliant. :T