Planning Strategies for Keeping the Vacation Home in the Family
Posted: 11 Dec 2005 Last revised: 28 Apr 2011
Date Written: April 26, 2011
Abstract
As the proportion of wealth invested in family recreational property increases, issues relating to keeping the property in the family take on a new significance for estate planners. Deep feelings come to the surface when family members are forced to deal with questions about how to share the responsibilities and the benefits of ownership. This article outlines some of the estate planning tools for transferring these properties, followed by a brief discussion of some unusual transfer issues: cabins in British Columbia; and cabins on U.S. public land. Transferring the property is relatively easy, compared to maintaining harmony among its owners following the transfer. The next generation must determine how it will be maintained, how taxes, insurance, and maintenance will be paid for, and how its use will be divided among the family members, to name only a few of the issues that may arise. This article also examines methods of management and organization, which are critical to accomplishing this more daunting task.
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