The cost of running a single-family office may conflict with the goal of wealth preservation, according to a survey by researchers from Whittier Trust. The survey found that 80 percent of family offices outsource some aspect of their portfolio management, with one third outsource more than half of their portfolios. The most common outsourced functions were legal (52%) trading (45%) and cybersecurity (38%) While 25 to 28 percent of total operating costs are attributed to external services, maintaining the family office in-house could save a family of $2 million annually. The study also found that 86 percent of offices lack a succession plan for key decision makers, and that 85 percent of these offices lack personal information about the next generation. However, the study suggests that keeping a single family office may make more sense for a UHNW family, but it will be an expensive proposition.