Total income from legacies has dropped by 1.1 per cent in the 12 months to June according to the latest bulletin from Legacy Foresight.
Figures released by charity legacy consortium Legacy Foresight show that the income of its 83 members fell by 1.1 per cent in the 12 month period to June 2017, down to £1.41bn. Legacy Foresight said its members income grew “strongly in the first half of 2016” but incomes “flattened off and have now fallen slightly” since last summer.
It said that weakening markets meant overall legacy income had fallen despite “climbing death rates”, which it said would “help sustain overall legacy incomes” in the near future.
“Climbing death rates continue to boost legacy numbers, which rose by 3.2 per cent in the past 12 months. These additional bequests will pay out over the next 18 months, helping to sustain overall legacy incomes.”
The organisation’s bulletin blamed “flagging house prices and jittery stock markets” for affecting “average residential values” – with the average residual bequest values falling 3.7 per cent in the year to June 2017 to £57,000.
This was down from a record high of £59,100 in the year to June 2016 - the period leading up to the European Union referendum.
Legacy Foresight also said that “most commentators expect the British economy to slow significantly over the next two to three years while the finer details of the Brexit deal are thrashed out”, which is likely to negatively affect legacy income growth.
It predicted that, based on its market research, overall legacy income would grow by “2.7 per p.a. over the next five years – considerably slower than in recent years, but growth nonetheless”.
This year’s Legacy Monitor programme benchmarked 83 charities “who together account for 53 per cent of the legacy market,” according to Legacy Foresight.
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