Life is very different now than it was in the past, when leaving your children an inheritance was common practice. I still see many adult children who seem to consider an inheritance an "entitlement" whether or not their parents can realistically afford to leave them one. People are living much longer these days, and many find themselves needing to move into residential care of some kind, in their latter years. Some choose a retirement village setting, others need a higher level of care, both of which they generally have to fund themselves. I think the time has come where adult children need to stop expecting an inheritance, as that expectation can put pressure on parents and can negatively impact on decisions they might wish to make for themselves in their old age.