You have spent the better part of the last fifty years, or more, collecting baseball cards, Coca Cola memorabilia, classic cars, coins or other collectibles. What will happen to your collection after you are gone?
If you have an only child who has a similar collection and that child wants the collection, it is real easy. You could just leave your entire collection to that child. On the other hand, if you have more than one child and/or there is a lack of interest in your collection, it is a little more challenging.
With multiple children, you usually either have more than one child interested in the collection or no children interested. You could divide the entire collection among all your children. However, if one of your children has no interest in your collection, part of your collection would likely be lost or broken up.
When you have more than one child interested in your collection, you could divide it up only among those children who have an interest in your collection. This could keep the collection going long after you are gone.
What if one of your children is a “gimmee” pig who is always saying “gimmee, gimmee, gimmee”? If this child wants a piece of your collection, then you usually have the same issues as with a child who really has no interest in the collection. The greedy child most likely would not take care of or maintain your collection.
To maintain your collection as a complete unit, you may want to leave it to the one child who is most willing or likely to take care of it. Another way to keep your collection together is to have your estate planning documents provide for an auction among your children for the entire collection as a whole.
You could set up a live auction with your children in which they would bid on and pay for the purchase of your collection from your estate. Alternatively, children could bid on the collection which would set the value for its distribution from your estate. Part of the winning child’s share of your estate would be your collection valued at the bid amount.
When you have no children or other beneficiaries who have any interest in your collection, you have several options. If you do not care much about what happens to your collection after you are gone, you could either keep it or sell it. If you just kept it, you can enjoy it until the end of your days and then let the children fight over it and ultimately dispose of it after you are gone.
You can sell your collection during your lifetime if you are not terribly attached to it. You could be pleasantly surprised at the value of some of these collectibles. Since you are collecting it, there most likely will be someone else out there who also collects it. Ebay and other internet auction sites can get the word out to the most potential buyers.
Another option which can keep your collection intact, is to donate it. You could donate your collection to a charitable organization, museum or other association which would be happy to receive such a gift.
If you do not need or want your collection during your lifetime, you could donate your collection while you are still alive. This way, you can have the enjoyment of seeing other people appreciate your collection as it is displayed at the organization or museum.
You may also possibly be able to take an income tax charitable deduction for the donation. In addition, you could set up a maintenance fund that would assure that the collection would be maintained during your lifetime and after you are gone.
Similarly, you could make a bequest that leaves your collection to a charitable organization, museum or other association after you are gone. Just as with a lifetime donation, you could also donate to a maintenance fund that would protect and preserve your collection for generations to come.
You can put conditions on your donation such as when the collection no longer is to be used by the organization or that it could not be sold. In such instances, you could say that either it would have to be donated to another charitable organization for similar purposes or it must be returned to your heirs.
You have worked hard all of your life on your collection. If you want future generations to reap the benefits of your lifetime’s work, you have lots of options. If you do not care what happens to your collection, you have lots of options. You have the control to do whatever you want.
By: Matthew M. Wallace, CPA JD
Published edited January 17, 2010 in The Times Herald newspaper, Port Huron, Michigan as: Deciding fate of collectibles can be a challenge