We’re going through this right now.
The article is dead on and the comments at the end are great.
That’s fine, it takes a load off, I’ll just give my stuff to some else.
I guess you don’t want my money either, I’ll donate it all to animal rescue.
That’s fine, it takes a load off, I’ll just give my stuff to some else.
I guess you don’t want my money either, I’ll donate it all to animal rescue.
Hard to put large, well made furniture into a 1,000 sq foot, one bedroom condo you pay $3,000 a month to rent so you can be downtown close to the hipster bars.
My siblings and I have already agreed with the parents what we will take when the sad day comes.
Not so - the in-laws have fabulous antiques going way back!
Yup. It’s tough, but the relationship between the price of stuff and the price of square footage for most of us has gotten so far out of wack (i.e. stuff keeps getting exponentially cheaper, while square footage gets exponentially more expensive) that stuff no matter how valuable just represents more of a burden than a benefit.
Oh, I’m glad I have a lot of my great-grandparents’ stuff... cabinet, Victrola, divan, and such. I’m glad I have my grandfather’s collection of old pocket-knives, and my grandmother’s collection of old toothpick-holders. Amongst tons and tons of other things. Not to mention my father’s old-time metal toys, like WW2 soldiers, wind-up Popeye, and Lone Ranger hardback books.
But if I were a youngster these days, and my ‘parents’ collections were basically comprised of the kind of junky, plastic, made-in-China, Wal-Mart type crap that has been the norm for the past thirty-years... no way in hell would I want such trash.
They want IKEA-expensive junk
My son and daughter in law own their own company designing and building downsized homes - the customers are young adults and their parents/grandparents. They want high end homes, but missing the excessive square footage. Neither have room or the desire for the stuff that filled the 3500 square foot home.
Appraisals on antique furniture is way down.
Not to over simplify or miss the point, but :
The situation is that grandparents and parents live in their houses full of furniture and assorted items. The children and grandchildren have grown up and have their homes, which are full of furniture and odds and ends.
When the older generations pass on or downsize and move from their bigger homes, the younger generations,who already have apartments or homes with furniture, simply may not have any place to put everything passed down from the older generations, even if they wanted to keep it all. Due to space limitations, its inevitable that much of the possessions of the older generations will be disposed of.
I’ve been selling my stuff and putting it into the kids bank account.
I bought a rather large bed when I moved into my apartment, which required some gluing for the frame. I’m going to be kicking myself when it’s time to move. Should have stuck with the air mattress on the floor.
Solution? To bring back a slogan from the 60s:
Burn, baby, burn!
My parents are in their 80’s and they asked each of us what we wanted. I mentioned a few sentimental things and perhaps one (or more) of my dad’s guns. Other than that just leave what they think I would want.
I’ve already got memories!
Haha, this is spot on. My in-laws used to drop off anything they no longer wanted. It made for a lot of dump runs for me.
My parents decided on their own to down-size from a small farm to a house in a retirement community.
Needless to say, we were blessed to receive a bunch of really good stuff ... tools, equipment, even work clothes and fishing gear. We were glad to get a lot of this stuff.
My daughter and I, though, were tasked with going through my Grandma’s stuff, which my mom put in with her stuff, and never touched for 15 years since her mom passed. Too painful.
That was an adventure: A family Bible in German; Grandma’s artwork and letters from her fellow flapper college friends; and 60 years worth of diaries.
We also got some pretty useful kitchen ware.
My folks are still going through their stuff. We were proud of them for taking care of this themselves, while they were in good health (84 and 80 at the time) and able to make these decisions on their own.
My dad had weird collections that we would have sold for pennies on the dollar at a farm sale, but he found other people interested in this same weird stuff and did well.
Take away point: Elders, make plans for your stuff while you are healthy and in control. To everyone: Photos and diaries are some of the best stuff.
Went through this.....twice.
As people age, they become very afraid. They become afraid that they will have no power or authority. Their stuff makes them feel like they have power.
My Dad turned cash into stuff he liked. This included belt buckles and gems.
When he passed, we had to sell those items. We were not experts in belt buckles or gems. He paid retail for these things.
People will buy them, but they use my favorite retailer saying when they buy.
“I can’t pay that much! I have to be able to make money, too!”
Cash is easily divided.
My experience exactly!
I’m giving all my 100 plus yo furniture - been in my family - to an antique dealer who has storage. I’m giving it to him. I’m old and can’t go to the trouble of selling.
The man is good and helps me around house.
/sarcasm, unless they really pi$$ me off. Don't have a reverse mortgage now, but I turn 62 shortly.
Our best piece is a massive corner solid walnut china cabinet that my MIL found in a barn. It was being used for roosting chickens. She spent a year getting it ready to move into her house.
We do have some type of fireplace something that is supposedly brass(painted black now) and was supposedly a piece from Polar Forest(Jefferson’s summer home http://www.poplarforest.org/) but those things are hard to verify.