You, like many of us, hope to leave a substantial inheritance for your children. Some asset types are more difficult to manage, require a large amount of storage space, or require a lot of cash. It might not make a good gift if the asset you are leaving is difficult to manage or hard to sell. You might have to distribute your estate more stress if you have a vintage piano, an old car, or digital assets like cryptocurrency. It is a good rule of thumb to keep your assets close to cash so that they are easier to manage and distribute to your beneficiaries.

The Top Four Assets That Can Be Hard to Inherit

Vacation properties, undeveloped land and other types: While real estate can be a valuable inheritance, it can also cause a lot of headaches for those who need to maintain and improve it. It can be difficult to pay taxes, utility bills, or upkeep fees. If the property is not easily sold, it can also create financial strain.

Timeshares: They are both a blessing as well as a curse. They allow you to travel in your dream locations, but they also have ongoing costs like taxes, annual fees, and utilities. You may not know that they can have many restrictions. It can be difficult to sell timeshares so it is a good idea to not impose this burden on your inheritors.

The Family Business: It is possible that you have worked hard to build your business’ success and now consider it your most valuable asset. It can quickly decline in value if it is passed to someone who doesn’t want it, or isn’t qualified. You should create a succession plan by choosing the right person to run it or planning for a sale.

Storage Units: It will take a lot of effort to empty a storage container if it isn’t full of gold and cash. This could lead to unnecessary monthly payments.

Talk with your children and your inheritors about which assets you’d like them to acquire. Also, consider which assets might be more of an obligation than a benefit. An estate planning attorney will be able to help you design the best strategy to make these disbursements.

This article was written by Alla Tenina. Alla is one of the best bankruptcy attorneys in Los Angeles California, and the founder of Tenina Law. She has experience in bankruptcies, real estate planning, and complex tax matters. The information provided on this website does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice; instead, all information, content, and materials available on this site are for general informational purposes only. Information on this website may not constitute the most up-to-date legal or other information. This website contains links to other third-party websites. Such links are only for the convenience of the reader, user or browser; the ABA and its members do not recommend or endorse the contents of the third-party sites.