Over 1 in 4 advised women plan to switch over taxes

More than one in four women who already work with an advisor plan to switch within two years because their tax needs are going unmet, according to BlackRock's inaugural 2026 Future of Wealth study. InvestmentNews reported the findings on Oct. 29.

Escalent fielded the survey for BlackRock among 1,067 affluent and high-net-worth women investors and 409 financial advisors across the U.S. Women named growing wealth as their top financial priority. Advisors surveyed believed growing wealth ranked eighth and put preserving wealth first. Some 41% of women said better tax outcomes were a priority, compared with 12% of advisors who saw it as a key client concern.

In BlackRock's separate 2026 Advisor Trends Survey, 92% of advisors serving high-net-worth clients said they are frequently asked for tax guidance. Only 17% said after-tax returns are a primary driver of their portfolio decisions. BlackRock defines after-tax returns as what a client keeps once taxes are paid.

Nearly 40% of affluent women have no advisor, a share that rises to 45% among women with $10 million or more, according to BlackRock's broader findings on the advice gap.

Laura Combs, executive managing partner and head of Women & Wealth at Mercer Advisors, told InvestmentNews the industry underestimates how involved women already are. Many have run household finances for years, she said, and women make up 46% of U.S. entrepreneurs. Combs described the problem as structural. Families often rely on outside tax professionals who are not part of the financial plan, and when tax work is siloed, the advice tends to arrive after decisions are made.

Advisors who outsource tax planning may be losing women clients, BlackRock's figures suggest, particularly where the portfolio process does not weigh after-tax outcomes. Cerulli polling shows 55% of high-net-worth practices outsource tax planning, as Private Wealth Daily previously reported. Combs said in-house tax professionals spare clients from coordinating another relationship. She also said women should be part of the conversation from the first meeting, citing industry research that about 70% of women leave within a year of losing a spouse.

A separate BlackRock advisor survey, covered in Private Wealth Daily's Oct. 28 report on plan advisors, found existing clients supply a 36% greater share of growth at top practices.