How Much Money Must Parents Leave Their Children? Wealth Expert Suggests Taking Points From Bill Gates, Warren Buffet

Discussions about inheritance or money to leave the children might be a difficult subject to broach among parents. Some say that this matter might be more appropriate for the wealthy. However, a wealth expert says that regardless of the family's actual fortune, parents could take points from billionaires, such as Bill Gates or Warren Buffet, in considering how much they should leave to their children when they are gone.

The Independent reports that many billionaires don't intend to leave their vast fortunes with their children when they die. Bill Gates and his wife Melinda — whose net worth is reportedly around $81 billion and Warren Buffet — whose net worth is at $65.4 billion, are leaving most of their money to charity.

Bill Gates once told Daily Mail that his kids, Jennifer, Rory and Phoebe, will have to make their own fortune when they are able to work because inheriting billions will be actually be a liability. However, the children will still receive some money from their parents.

"It will be a minuscule portion of my wealth," Bill Gates said. "It will mean they have to find their own way."

Warren Buffet has the same principle about leaving his kids inheritance money. The tycoon's grown children, Peter, Susan and Howard, will still get their dad's fortune when he's gone but they won't be given everything.

"My kids are going to carve out their own place in this world, and they know I'm for them whatever they want to do," Warren Buffet said in a 1986 interview with Fortune. The self-made billionaire, who owns a multinational conglomerate, advices parents to leave their children "enough money so that they would feel they could do anything, but not so much that they could do nothing."

Not leaving children huge amounts of money is one way for parents to help them build their lives. Wealth expert Kevin O'Leary often advices this same principle to other parents.

"If you don't start out your life with the fear of not being able to feed yourself and your family, then what motivates you to go get a job?" O'Leary pointed out, per Chatelaine. He believes that fear is a healthy motivator in this case.

Do you agree with the principle of the wealthy? Will you apply it with your own children? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.