Chance of real boon from baby boomers: Capital Region nonprofits could see billions from wills in the form of legacy donations, new report suggests

By Chris Churchill

May 25, 2008 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) -- COLONIE -- The baby boom generation's big numbers could equal big money for the region's nonprofits -- but only if boomers include such groups in their wills.

In the Capital Region alone, boomers will leave $98.8 billion to subsequent generations during the next 50 years, according to a report released Thursday by The Community Foundation for the Greater Capital Region, a nonprofit umbrella group.

And boomers, generally defined as those born between 1946 and 1964, will transfer as much as $40 trillion nationally during the time period, according to the Center on Wealth and Philanthropy at Boston College.

That's the biggest wealth transfer in American history.

"There's always been wealth passed from one generation to another," said Paul Hohenberg, a retired professor of economics at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy. "What makes this noteworthy is that it's such a big number of people."

Boomers, of course, have since their earliest days had a transformative effect on American society. Economists say the group could again have a big impact by leaving some of their accumulated wealth to nonprofits that target social ills.

The donation of just 5 percent of Capital Region transferred wealth would leave nonprofits here with $4.9 billion over the next 50 years. A similar percentage of so-called legacy giving could generate nearly $700 million for area nonprofits before 2015.

"It's a remarkable opportunity," said Wally Altes, former president of the Albany-Colonie Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Altes was a speaker at a conference Thursday that celebrated the report's release. Nonprofit leaders were urged to court boomers opportunistically.

Yet doing so presents challenges.

First, forever-young boomers must be persuaded not only to craft wills, but to consider their impact on a post-boomer world.

Hohenberg, who also is a Community Foundation board member, said many boomers may be unwilling to give before they die because they fear "outliving their money." He said that's especially true in an era when many Americans expect to live 20 or 30 years beyond retirement but worry about the stability of Social Security and Medicare programs.

Another difficulty is the fact that many New Yorkers move South when they retire and could therefore leave their money to charities in their new locales.

"It behooves charitable organizations to reach these people before that," Hohenberg said. "You have to connect with people and tie them to your cause."

Thursday's report, "Wealth Transfer in Northeastern New York: The Future of Giving in the Greater Capital Region," arrives at a difficult time for many nonprofits. Speakers at the conference, held at the Latham headquarters of New York State United Teachers, lamented that the groups are facing an economic downturn, growing costs, donor fatigue and increasing competition for charitable dollars.

But Don Marke, a researcher for the Center for Rural Entrepreneurship at the Rural Policy Research Institute, the Missouri group that conducted the study of 10 Capital Region counties, said the potential for a new wave of giving provides reason for optimism, and the possibility for more livable cities and towns.

"The story isn't the numbers," he said. "The story is what you can do with the numbers."

Chris Churchill can be reached at 454-5442 or by e-mail at cchurchill@timesunion.com.

Newstex ID: KRTB-0007-25521329