How to Leave Your Loved Ones Your Material Possessions

Most people planning their estates are providing how their real estate and monetary assets will be distributed. Stocks, houses, businesses, and bank accounts are the initial things people think about when they start their estate planning process; however, your material possessions are sometimes just as important.

Saying Who Receives What Should Be Enough, Right?

Unfortunately no. It is not enough to just say who receives what. The only way to ensure that your wishes are followed in regards to your material possessions is to include them physically in the documents of your estate plan.

You cannot enforce a verbal testamentary. Even a written list, describing who receives what, is not enough to present it in court unless it is in the trust and will documents.

In some cases, your personal property may be distributed through the Illinois or Missouri intestacy statute. This practice can result in the selling of some of your family's heirlooms and the profit being split evenly amongst your family.

Telling your loved ones what belongings are theirs once you pass away is not uncommon. You can possibly tell your brother that he will have a specific piece of jewelry and tell your daughter that she will receive some of your artwork. However as stated earlier, this instance can cause litigation issues amongst your family during the distribution of your estate.

Feuds in the family over valuable pieces is also common when not included in your estate plan. If who receives what piece is not specified, then the recipient intending to receive such piece will have no legal recourse if the piece is taken from them before receiving.

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