ention estate planning and most people think of making a plan for assets like bank accounts, stocks and property, like a house. What about your jewelry, china or even your military medals? What happens to those things when you die? If you don’t have a plan for who gets items like jewelry or the grandfather clock, then the most likely scenario will be fighting among your heirs. According to an article in MSN Money, there are ways to mitigate fighting over who gets what. They include:
1) The owner decides who gets what
As you draw up your will and other estate documents, delineate who is to get the china and who is to get the baseball card collection. Of course, not everyone will be happy with your choice but since you stated your wishes ahead of time, there will be less arguing. If an item has monetary as well as sentimental value, like jewelry, get it appraised and put the appraisal document with the estate documents.
2) If the children/relatives will decide, offer some carrots for not arguing over the items for too long.
If a parent states that the children are in charge of divvying up the household goods, then there should be a provision that states if they can’t agree who gets what, the items are to be sold and the money either split among the children or given to charity. While not everyone will like this solution, experts say that this reduces fighting. For example, if two siblings are fighting over who gets the grandfather clock, the executor of the estate will sell it and split the proceeds among the siblings. So, Lisa may not like it that the clock is no longer in the family, but she can feel some satisfaction that her brother George doesn’t have it and vice versa.
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