Top 5 Money Mistakes I Made as a Future Inheritor
Top 5 Money Mistakes I Made as a Future Inheritor
I’m Katherine. I’m a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER®, a financial advisor for inheritance, and a fellow inheritor.
This week on the blog I’m sharing the top money mistakes I’ve made as a future inheritor.
My mission at Sunnybranch is to take the shame and guilt out of being rich. Come along with me while I pull back the curtain - I’m a financial advisor who has been working with inheritors for almost a decade and I still didn’t get everything right along the way!
Posted on October 2, 2025 by Katherine Fox.
Top 5 Money Mistakes I Made as a Future Inheritor
If you’re reading this, chances are you’re worried about making a wrong move with your money.
Or maybe you already did.
In either case, remember it’s not your fault.
There isn’t a lot of good advice out there for future inheritors.
Especially because standard financial planning guidance doesn’t usually apply to your situation.
That’s why I wrote this post, to normalize your feelings and let you know you aren’t alone.
I’ve got a lot of advice for future inheritors, but this is my first post to share exactly what I wish I had done differently over the past 20 years of managing my own money.
If what I’m saying resonates, reach out to schedule a call.
Honor your worries by making the time to talk to someone who understands what you’re going through and can help you find your path forward.
It’s the best first step you can take to feeling more confident in managing a current or future inheritance.
Top 5 Money Mistakes I Made as a Future Inheritor
Spoiler alert: it could have been MUCH worse.
#1 I took money for granted and got swept up in the spending storm
This was one of my earliest money mistakes.
I grew up in a sheltered, wealthy area.
It was the early aughts so a lot of Juicy tracksuits, Uggs, and Tory Burch.
I LOVED labels, but my parents weren’t flashy so I spent most (all) of the money I got on clothes.
Which was a fair bit of money, because when I was 16 I convinced my dad to fork over $500/month from his Social Security to “teach me about managing money.”
I had a GREAT PowerPoint presentation and he didn’t need the money anyway!
But I blew through all that cash on clothes I don’t have anymore. And $6,000/year invested when I was 16, 17, and 18 would be a LOT of money today.
#2 I didn’t learn how to evaluate how much things * actually * cost
I didn’t learn how to care about/evaluate how much things cost until I was making and spending my own money in my early 20s.
Until that point, I was still spending money, but it came from my inherited/gifted stock portfolio. It felt like play money.
I wasted money on things that could have easily been forgone, or cost way less, because I could.
Again, because I had enough money this wasn’t a real problem. It’s not like I was going into debt or spending everything I had.
At the same time, I was wasting money that I wish I could have back now.
When you’re a current or future inheritor who never had to worry about cash flow, it’s easy to feel like you’re living life with monopoly money. But that attitude is ultimately damaging not only your future financial success but also your chance to build an independent, fulfilling life.
Because if you don’t feel like the money you’re spending is yours, then your life isn’t yours either.
Which is why I help Sunnybranch clients rewrite their money stories and start taking ownership of their inherited or gifted assets.
Are these money mistakes resonating with you? Want to make sure they don’t keep dictating the course of your life? Book a FREE call now to talk about your worries and learn how Sunnybranch can help you find a path forward.
#3 I didn’t pay attention to taxes
I was in charge of my own inherited/gifted investment portfolio from my early 20s on. I started taking money out every year when I graduated because I wasn’t making the big bucks as a 23-year-old paralegal.
BUT I was still with my parent’s financial advisor, and they didn’t tell me those withdrawals meant I was selling stock (and had a big tax bill coming!)
It wasn’t until my later 20s that I learned portfolio withdrawals ALWAYS require saving for taxes due.
It still amazes me that other advisors aren’t helping their clients understand the impact of these withdrawals and plan for how they’re going to pay their tax bill.
Helping clients plan for their taxes due is a huge part of my work with future inheritors at Sunnybranch. Unfortunately, it’s not something most advisors help their clients figure out!
“That’s a huge lesson I bring to clients at Sunnybranch. Understanding that “how things have been done” doesn’t need to dictate how you live your life.
If you want to diverge from your family’s path, with different investments, reparative giving, or anything in between, I’m here for you”
#4 I didn’t take enough risk
When I was in my early 20s, I was on a road trip with a friend in east Texas. We were driving through her hometown and there was so much land for sale for cheap.
I thought, I should buy some of this! She can manage it for me and it will be a nice little investment.
I didn’t, because I had no idea what I was doing.
Now that land is worth 10-20x the prices we saw that day.
I’m not saying I should have jumped into investments blindly, but I do think I should have explored some of my ideas more seriously.
I should have tried to diversify out of how my family made money and learn more about what I was interested in at an early age.
That’s a huge lesson I bring to clients at Sunnybranch. Understanding that “how things have been done” doesn’t need to dictate how you live your life.
If you want to diverge from your family’s path, with different investments, reparative giving, or anything in between, I’m here for you.
#5 I didn’t learn to interact with people who didn’t grow up rich until WAY too late
This one is painful.
Remember that sheltered suburb I grew up in?
Big surprise - wealthy families were the majority.
Poverty, not having enough, or even not having an overabundance wasn’t something that was talked about or on display.
I knew, intellectually, that there were people who didn’t have as much money as we did.
But I never considered myself rich, because I went to school with people who helped found Microsoft and had private jets.
Which is not my family’s money story - we were just “regular rich.” (sidenote: YIKES!)
It didn’t help that I grew up riding horses and going to summer camp. Not exactly a hotbed of class diversity in either place.
So when I got to college and met people from all over the socioeconomic spectrum, I didn’t know what to do.
I didn’t know if I was supposed to pretend to need to work or to struggle for money, or worry about student debt.
I tried a little bit of everything and most of it backfired. Also, it was gross.
Now, I’m aggressively honest about my family’s money story (see: this blog and my IG).
This probably isn’t the path you want to take, but in my experience, we all need to talk about money with each other MORE, not less.
Learning to be open and honest about your inherited wealth doesn’t mean shouting it from the rooftops, but it does mean you can enter into authentic relationships with people who grew up in different class/socioeconomic backgrounds.
If this blog post is the first time you’ve ever heard a fellow inheritor say the quiet parts out loud, let’s chat. You don’t have to go through this alone. Book a FREE call now to tell me more about what’s going on in your money life and start finding solutions to the problems keeping you up at night.
Let’s take the next step together
Understanding how to avoid money mistakes as a current or future inheritor is not easy. Inheritors can encounter a wide variety of different situations requiring knowledge and finesse to manage. If you need more help, you can download The 20 Inheritance Terms You Need to Know, or reach out to Katherine Fox, CFP® and CAP®, a fiduciary, fee-only financial planner to learn how Sunnybranch can help you get confident in your ability to manage your wealth.
