Plan after death for those without family

GrubbyGirl_2

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81919855#Comment_81919855

You're assuming "stuff" has no value. Many people have lots of "stuff" worth lots of money - for example I have a collection worth c£30k was well as lots of jewellry

sheslookinhot

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81920460#Comment_81920460

I'm not assuming anything 😊, I was responding/agreeing with advice to the OP.

JGB1955

Sadly, a lot of 'stuff' has little value. For probate It's not uncommon for the contents of a house to be valued at between £500 and £1,000. My father's house cost £750 to clear - leaving a value of '£0'. My husband has a collection of (pristine) Dinky cars, complete with original packaging from the 1950's. They are only worth what someone is willing to pay for them…. I very much suspect auctioneers will turn up their nose at them.

lincroft1710

If you do have e.g. jewellery worth even £10,000 (secondhand value not replacement value) then it would be eminently sensible to bequeath this to a single beneficiary (be that person or organisation).

Also remember that you could live for at least another 30 years and your personal circumstances could easily change in that period.

Rusty190

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81920516#Comment_81920516

Have a look on E-bay in the "sold" section for prices that have been paid recently for some of these items.

You may be pleasantly surprised - or not!

silvercar

FiL has boxes and boxes of ‘valuable’ plates that he bought over years, if not decades, from the Sunday newspaper magazine adverts. Apparently we are to keep them for ever as they will only gain in value. I asked him if they were dishwasher proof and consequently they are now being left to one of my SiLs, who he trusts more than me to look after them properly. Win, win!

sheslookinhot

Why would your SiL want to keep boxes of plates (maybe keep the peace at present) ? Why burden someone with stuff ? No guarantee, of course, what will happen to them when the inevitable happens.

Sooz1966

My dad had 4 Royal Doulton figures (Montgomery, Churchill, etc) which are in original boxes with certificates. All my life, I'd been told they were worth a fortune (like £1k plus each) and were to be treasured, not sold. I've now checked on-line auctions and would be lucky to get £120 each.

I hate them and don't want them on display. No offence but these 4 men are not my heroes, I wasn't even born then. So up in the loft they've gone, to become a problem for my beneficiaries in years to come!

Brie

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81924825#Comment_81924825

auction them off and then you don't have to think about them!!

MiL thought lots of her stuff was very valuable, all the old books etc. Word got about and when she rang another book shop for a valuation they strangely were not available. No one wanted tatty paperbacks or ripped Victorian cookbooks. And as for her statue that had been dropped and was being stuck back together with bluetack, well that somehow got lost when she moved.

lincroft1710

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81924825#Comment_81924825

I would think that in one to two generations' time there will be quite a lot of unwanted Churchilliana