The years of professional success and wise investments afforded you many things that a typical family may only dream about having. Among them is an enviable list of high-value property that represents a respectable portion of your estate. The fine art, jewelry and collectibles such as rare books and sports memorabilia are tokens of wealth, but also have a certain amount of emotional investment, too.
Their future must be addressed during the estate planning process. What will become of them after you die? You understand that your heirs do not share the exact interests or aesthetic values. Yet some of your high-value assets will land in the hands of beneficiaries. You want to make sure of that. But what about some of the others?
Transfer to others, sell them
Affluent individuals and couples may have an assortment of valuable properties that they cannot easily transfer or dispose. From priceless wine collections and luxury cars to an assortment of antiques, these assets pose a dilemma of sorts in estate planning. Or no dilemma at all as long as you have a plan in place.
Here are some potential options toward addressing collections that are valuable and sentimental:
- Bequeath them to beneficiaries: Your estate plan would include instructions on transferring these collections to specific heirs. However, you also must consider providing an endowment to maintain some of these valuable collectibles.
- Prepare to sell them: You can do this while you are still alive and create a trust for your beneficiaries. Selling them via auction is a good choice, too. Consider the recent results of baseball memorabilia owned by broadcaster Vin Scully. Last fall, the Scully auction netted more than $2 million.
- Donate them: Many organizations may benefit from some of these assets, and the list includes museums, universities and nonprofits.
Your estate includes valuable and unique assets, and you may have difficulty finding a home for them. But you can accomplish this with a great amount of thought, preparation and planning.
