Make No Little Plans
Several institutions in Chicago that depend on donated funds are running their largest philanthropic drives ever right now. What's behind these megacampaigns?
(page 3 of 4)
By the Numbers
"Transfer of wealth" is the delicate term for the redistribution of assets after a death. A new Donors Forum study projects that a higher than average amount of wealth will be transferred in Chicago than in the country as a whole over the next 25 years. More than 14 percent of Chicagoans are over 62 years old, and a higher percentage than the national average are over 85.
The table below estimates the windfall if 5 percent of the transfer of wealth goes to charity. Moss Cail, research director at the Forum, says, "These numbers mark an unprecedented redistribution of assets in the next quarter century and hold great potential for philanthropic giving to the greater Chicago community."
County | County net worth (in billions) | Avg worth per household (in thousands) | Est. transfer of wealth over next ten years (in billions) | If 5% goes to charity, that's ... (in millions) |
COOK | $521 | $308 | $86 | $4,305 |
DU PAGE | $103 | $335 | $16 | $776 |
KANE | $31 | $251 | $4 | $218 |
LAKE | $77 | $373 | $12 | $592 |
McHENRY | $24 | $249 | $3 | $157 |
WILL | $42 | $228 | $5 | $232 |
SIX-COUNTY TOTAL of 5% figures: $6.28 billion | ||||
Did you like what you read here? Subscribe to Chicago Magazine »
Comments are moderated. We review them in an effort to remove offensive language, commercial messages, and irrelevancies.