The 'great wealth transfer' is happening — but not to your kids. One cost is draining the trillions boomers were supposed to pass down

While boomers might assume that they're passing money down to their children, elderly parents in need of long-term care might put a wrench in this plan.

The price of long-term care

According to 2025 data from CareScout (2), the monthly median cost for a semi-private room in long-term care is $9,581 and $10,798 for a private room. Long-term care (aka nursing home care) involves supervision and nursing care 24/7. Though, even options for people who need less assistance are quite costly. For example, the monthly median cost to live in an assisted living community is $6,200.

These high prices are affecting Americans' wallets and their long-term wealth. One example is Zach Hefferen. During the peak years of his career and beginnings of his own family, his father was diagnosed with dementia and unable to care for himself. "His dementia left him unable to sign up for veterans benefits, manage his finances, consistently take prescription medicine, or handle such basic tasks as managing the refrigerator, charging a cellphone (leading to a landline), hanging up the handset for the landline (leading to a corded phone), or putting in hearing aids (such that all phone calls were missed)" he wrote in Business Insider (3).

In the end, Hefferen ended up spending $17,000 for a studio apartment in a memory care unit to help his father get the care he needed. "We also had to pay for incidentals, physical therapy, and haircuts, all of which were not included in the monthly rate" he wrote.

While there are definitely care facilities with lower fees, this was Hefferen's best option, as the others had long waitlists and he needed the care immediately.

"The complexities of Medicaid and Medicare, red tape, and the high cost of long-term care insurance only make things worse…In total, we spent over $270,000 over the last few months of his life," he shared.

Experiences like Hefferen's are not uncommon, especially with so many people falling into the 'sandwich generation,' meaning people who are supporting aging parents and raising children at the same time.