Equitable Division of Personal Property in an Estate

“How to Divide Personal Property Fairly Amongst Heirs”
One of the most difficult and emotional processes of settling an estate is the fair division of the personal property of the deceased amongst heirs. Our experience is that there are usually many different scenarios happening all at once. Trustees and executors are left needing to sort through the personal lifetime accumulation of belongings of a recently deceased loved one. Trustees and heirs need to find a way to divide property fairly. Usually this is the first time the Trustee and heirs have ever had to do this. Several heirs can want and fight over the same valuable item. The item heirs “think” might be valuable, is not valuable at all. A valuable item has been left to one heir, and no one knows how to equalize what is left to the rest of the heirs. Some items are highly desired by some heirs and have no value except sentimental. Nobody knows what is worth what amount, or whether Grandma’s teacup is valuable or not. There is so much personal property that this in addition to the recent loss of a loved one, becomes a daunting task for the Trustee or Executor.

Family relationships are at stake. Perceived unfairness at the time of distribution of property can result in many years of family strife. How is one to accomplish this overwhelming task in an orderly, cohesive and equitable manner?

At Bosch Appraisal & Estate Services, we are professional appraisers who have developed a simple method to guide Trustees and Executors to achieve the equitable distribution of personal family belongings. Our method is fair to every person involved. We save Executors and Trustees and Heirs hours of strife and grief at a most difficult time in their lives. This is accomplished by our instructing you how to put our plan into action. We teach you to do this process right the first time. You will not have to learn the "hard" way or look back on mistakes you wish for the rest of your life that you had not made. We also conduct the distribution and oversee the distribution of property to heirs for you, if you prefer.

Our services are provided at our hourly rate of $175.00 per hour. An appraisal may be necessary on appreciating antique and fine art items....but is not usually necessary for ordinary household items of a non-appreciating nature.

We also provide a free 1/2 hour consultation over the telephone at which time we will discuss with you your particular set of circumstances and the solutions we provide. There is no obligation to hire us, but we are certain that you will after we outline our simple procedures for you. Let our experience guide you through one of the most difficult of life’s experiences. That of the complete distribution and liquidation of a family member’s home.

We serve the San Francisco Bay Area and can be reached at 707-773-3970. Visit our web site
at www.boschappraisal.com or e-mail us at nbbosch@pacbell.net for further information.