Julie Hall

The Estate Lady

Julie Hall is an expert in dealing with personal property from the Depression era. Estate dissolution and helping grieving families make appropriate decisions during the estate settlement process are her specialties. She is a certified personal property appraiser, an estate sales professional, a residential content removal specialist, and a broker of fine items. As owner of The Estate Lady®, LLC, she brings 18 years of experience to families facing the overwhelming task of dissolving the family home.


Posted 01/13/2010

The Solution to the Irony of Heirlooms

Planning is the key

By Julie Hall

We spend a lifetime collecting and caring for heirlooms, yet we rarely take the time to make a plan for them once we pass away. We allow our children to fight over them, instead of making wish lists and talking with them about their wishes.

Some will argue that their three-year old grandchild will want these heirlooms 30 years from now. If I were a betting lady, I would disagree! The younger generations have no desire for china, silver, crystal, etc. They prefer IKEA, Pottery Barn, and Crate and Barrel to grandmother’s “old stuff.” Though we have fond memories of heirlooms, our homes are already too full, and 70% of our stuff we will never use. So, let us ponder for a minute: How will our children handle our estate when our time comes?

Planning is the key to a smoother division of property and estate settlement.

  • Enlist the assistance of an estate planning attorney. This is no time to be frugal.
  • Choose an appropriate executor who will get it done, remain firm, and honor the decedent’s wishes.
  • Hire a personal property appraiser to ascertain what has value vs. what doesn’t.
  • Base the division of personal property on equitable distribution to keep it as fair as possible.
  • Read The Boomer Burden: Dealing with Your Parents’ Lifetime Accumulation of Stuff, which is perfect for clients, attorneys, heirs, and parents.

By Julie Hall
The Estate Lady Blog

[First posted January 4, 2010, at Julie Hall's Estate Lady Web site.]

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