Effective estate planning is crucial for keeping vacation property in the family

The following is from Wendy S. Goffe’s article entitled From NASCAR Condominiums To Private Mausoleums: Keeping The Vacation Home In The Family (With Sample Tenancy In Common Agreement), published in the February 2008 issue of the ALI-ABA Estate Planning Course Materials Journal:

Few families successfully transfer ownership of a cabin or vacation property by accident. Families that do accomplish this Herculean feat do so only with a great deal of advanced multi-generational planning, often with mechanisms to adjust the plan as circumstances and needs change.***

The legal mechanism for transferring the property is only the first of many challenges. Following the transfer, the next generation must determine how to maintain the property; how to pay taxes, insurance, and maintenance; and how to divide use of the property among the family members.***

Once the family members are informed of the various options (which may include setting aside portions for conservation purposes, selling portions to raise capital to support the remaining property, and transferring portions to succeeding generations), the first step in creating a master plan is to have the facilitator interview each family member.***

Special thanks to Joel Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.