Greene County ranks No. 5 in state for wealth transfers

A recent study by insurance and financial data trackers SmartAsset ranked Greene County No. 5 in the Show-Me State with residents realizing an annual inheritance of over $133 million. The study examined data on wealth transfers made during estate settlements and life insurance payouts.

St. Louis County took the top spot in Missouri with annual inheritance exceeding $735 million.

The report used assets transferred and life insurance payouts – minus estate taxes – to determine the estimated inheritance tally and assigned an inheritance index figure to each county. St. Louis, for example, recorded an inheritance index of 8.1, while Greene County tied with Jefferson County with an index of 1.5.

According to the methodology, SmartAsset calculated county-level wealth transfers by taking the product of each county’s average household wealth and the annual number of deaths among wealth-holding individuals – those 25 years old or older. To determine total life-insurance payouts, it examined life insurance coverage rates and statewide insurance payouts, with counties that had higher coverage rates assigned a higher proportion of the state’s total insurance payout.

SmartAsset also developed an interactive map ranking the top counties for wealth transfers across the country. Los Angeles County, California, was listed as No. 1 nationwide with an annual inheritance of over $9 billion and an inheritance index of 100. Cook County, Illinois, ranked No. 2 with just under $6.8 billion in wealth transfers. 

A June 2013 report by the Alliance of Missouri Community Foundations, said the wealth amassed by the baby boomer generation would trigger an estimated $135 billion in wealth transfers across the state through 2023. Baby boomers in the Ozarks were estimated to pass on $47.2 billion to their heirs during that 10-year time frame.