Specifically, Generation Z said the age for that conversation should take place at 15 while millennials and Generation X said 16 and baby boomers and older believed 18 was the right age to do it, the study said.
In reality, the actual average age people were when they had that conversation was 19, the study found. Looking at it by generation, members of Generation Z said that they had the conversation at 15, which is the age they thought it appropriate, while millennials had it at 18, Generation Z at 20 and baby boomers and older at 22.
Collins believes that the reason for the interest with the younger generations has to do with the amount of information they receive, including a steady barrage about the troubled economy and high inflation.
“All that stuff gets sent to the younger generation so quickly that I think it is causing them to say ‘OK, so do I need to be talking about this stuff much earlier’,” he said. “I think these new college graduates are getting inundated with it and it’s driving them to have these important conversations.”
The study confirmed the importance of family members, including spouses, and the financial advisor when it comes to seeking financial advice. On average 31% said their most trusted source for financial advice was their financial advisor with 17% saying it is a spouse and 14% saying another family member.
Among the generations surveyed those were the three top categories with all the generations, except Generation Z, ranking advisors on top of their list. Generation Z trusted a family member more.
“I was encouraged by the value that everyone across the board values in that relationship,” Collins said. “They want to talk to a human being.”
He noted in the study that other sources for financial advice including the news or online sources ranked in single digits for the primary source of financial advice.
The study demonstrates the importance that a financial advisor can have in an individual’s life and how that support can span muti generations. It also serves as a reminder for advisors, such as Collins, to encourage their clients to have those difficult conversations with their parents so that they can protect their health and their wealth for the future.
“I’m going to take these numbers and have it re-convict me and my clients [to speak to their parents],” he said. “I like the fact that younger generations are talking more about finances and they still trust their family and their financial advisor.”