Other assets

[imoldernu]

Just curiousity, not to be snoopy.

Cash, Pensions, SS, Stocks, Bonds, 401's, Auto's, Real Estate (home) etc.

Other than that!

We may own land or additional real estate or even a business.
We don't talk about it much here, but I'm pretty sure that we all have some kind of other valuables... from antiques to jewelry, to cars, to collections of stamps, or coins or comic books or art... etc,etc... All of which could/will have some value to others at some point in time.
...............................................................

So the questions:
What?
Valuable to whom?
Convertible to cash?
Plans for... inheritance? Cash in?

So, for me...
Huge electronics collection... destined for dump or GoodWill
Camp at the lake... will sell
Florida Mfg Home... sell or give away
Jewelry... just some silver and gold stuff that we'll sell if the price of gold goes up again... and a nice pearl necklace I bought in Japan for a few cents on the dollar... that and DW's Grandmother/Mother's dual diamond rings... to go to only grandaughter...
Coin collection... Some day will get around to an appraisal.
My swimming medal collection 125 pcs.... maybe ask to be buried with me...
Tools... probably will have them til I die, and then won't care, or maybe sell... original cost... $10-12K... Sell for $200.
Bikes... 7 antiques... give away to neighborhood kids. Probably a few thousand dollars worth to the right party, but too lazy to go Craig's list or EBay.
Kawasaki and Yamaha Scooters... and Club Car golf Cart... free to neighbors, or go with the house.

So they're not all really assets, but things of some value to me/us today...

Do you ever think about this stuff?

 

[Walt34]

I have been thinking about it as it relates to downsizing. Lots of books I'll probably take to the library/used book store. Some tools I'll give to relatives if they want them or Goodwill if they don't.

Some of it is just stuff that had a value to me (after all, I bought it) but I can't think of anyone else who would. Perhaps call a junk hauler. When dealing with one hauling stuff out of FIL's house he said "There's no such thing as junk. Somebody out there wants it."

But we don't have anything like valuable artwork, jewelry, antiques of any sort, coin collections or the like. Just normal everyday stuff that is somewhat dated.

 

[easysurfer]

Got some old baseball cards. Don't know how valuable but fun to look at from time to time.

Other than that, any other stuff is pretty much future Goodwill type stuff.

 

[Pleeplus]

1 million Dinars that I bought when I was in graduate school based on a can't miss recommendation from another student.

 

[chilkoot]

1/3 ownership of a rental home, two paid-for cars and one paid-for motorcycle (would like to increase this last number, but first waiting to recover from a stroke. This takes a long time).

Beyond that, just the normal accumulation of the usual stuff--CDs, books, tools, etc. Like Walt, no artwork, no collections, no jewelry or other stuff like that.

 

[W2R]

Other than my home, car, and investments.... Nothing!

I make a point of it.

I collect CHEAP art; it is more fun to chase down a $30 piece of art that I actually like, than to find a $3000 piece of art that I like. The latter would be too easy! Where's the fun in that?

I have no "real" jewelry. I have some electronics, but it is all outdated and worthless.

When I leave this mortal coil, my heirs need only to back a dumpster up to my house and shovel all my stuff into it. Quick and easy. Likewise, if we decide to move to another state, we plan to junk or donate most of our stuff and take no more than what fits into a small rental truck.

Maybe this is why nothing was taken when my home was burglarized last month. Oh well, at least the burglars did not leave a charitable donation for me.

 

[aja8888]

Tools, lots of them. Probably 5 sets of open end and box wrenches, several sets of sockets, crazy things like a pair of small diameter wire twisters, concrete tools, boxes of files (all the way from jewelers to big rasps), drills, bits, saws, vacuum tools, 5 HP air compressor, paint guns, an on and on. I have tools in closed boxes and don't know what's in them. Electrical testers, OBD2 tester, Ross Tech engineered software for Audi's and VW's, and several tool boxes and cabinets. DW has declared my a fanatic and gave me the garage.

Unfortunately, we had daughters who couldn't care less how to change an intake manifold on a Corvette.

I can't bury them with me or I'll need 10 extra coffins......

 

[calmloki]

Probably the biggest value odd stuff is a bunch of 100 year old rugs from the Caucasus. Think holes and raggedy edges. Be that as it may, for a number of years we were collectors and volunteered at national oriental rug conventions. Also into Navajo rugs, molas; and I really like African Kuba cloths, though we don't have any. Value of the individual rugs, to us, has about zero correlation to the price we paid - in fact, one of the most expensive rugs is rolled up out in the garage because we just don't like it. Sometimes they grow on you, sometimes not.

 

[LitGal]

Our Favorite Possession

A poster announcing, "Special Service G.F.R.C. Presents the Rhythm Rations, a New Show by the 11th Special Service Platoon. 14 Piece Band...Dancers, Singers, Comedians, Novelty Acts."

It's printed on the back of a field map of France, ca. 1944-45, when DH's father was fighting under Patton in the Battle of the Bulge. After recuperating from wounds, he joined this band made up of Purple Heart Vets who toured European USO camps in the closing months of the war. All the members of the band signed the poster.

We have it enclosed in glass on both sides; the map is a reminder of just how scarce paper was at that time, in that place. We wonder if any of those guys are still alive.

FIL also left behind a photo of the band. He played trombone.

 

[Meadbh]

I have a jewelry collection of nice but not terribly valuable items that is probably worth a few thousand dollars. In my will I bequeath it to my only goddaughter. I have a nice collection of silverware, crystal and china, but these items have low resale value in today's market, and are expensive to ship. Perhaps I will leave them to a close friend locally, who may enjoy them. My furniture is a mixture of good and medium quality. There are no antiques. I own several investment properties and these will need to be sold. My executors can deal with it.

 

[jollystomper]

Back in the late 9's and early 2000s I made several business trips to Asia and bought DW jewelry that was relatively cheap at the time. DW had it appraised a few years ago and I was shocked at how much it had grown in value. DW likes to buy jewelry but seeks bargains at pawn shops and ethnic stores. Some of what she bought 6-7 years ago has also greatly appreciated.

Other than that, not much of value. DW has tons of books and I have a lot of old electronics, but no real value in those items.

 

[Sue J]

We have an Atmos clock. Right now it's correct twice a day. It would be worth more if it was accurate more often. We also have a Leica camera from 1961. The camera body has value but the real value comes from the dual range lens.

 

[ABQ2015]

I have two large corner cupboards circa 1800. I love them and want to take them with me when I relocate 1500 miles in two years. But am concerned about the cost and whether the cupboards would get damaged, especially the old wavy glass. I'm leaving all my antiques to my brother and sister in law who live in a 100+ year old house. My niece will probably inherit the home eventually and she also likes old stuff. None of the antiques are especially rare or valuable but it is a nice little collection if you like that sort of thing.

My older sister left me a diamond ring that is 1.5? carat (I can't remember the exact number). The old appraisal stated it was worth about $7500 but I get the impression that it might not actually be worth that much (a friend who likes jewelry guessed about $5K). It is not all that pretty and has a 80's setting. I keep meaning to get it appraised and insured - maybe have it put in a nicer setting and actually wear it. Since it belonged to my sister, I don't want to sell it. Am leaving it to my other niece who likes diamonds much more than I do.

 

[jimnjana]

A Thomas Rowlandson print dated 1812. I picked it up at an estate sale for 9 bucks. DW has a 1.5 carat diamond ring I found in a KFC parking lot. Still have some baseball cards that "might be worth something someday". DW has a picture of her meeting Joe Dimaggio as well as his autograph on a certificate commemorating 56 months of her army recruiting unit meeting mission. In 30 years or so when we downsize to urn sized accommodations we won't care what happens to "our stuff" we left behind.

 

[ERD50]

Nothing of any great $ value really. If I got motivated, I might make a list for the kids, to put a few things in the following categories:

A) Items of particular sentimental value and/or that have some family history. But if that isn't important to them, get rid of by any means you see fit.

B) Things that would be of value to somebody that might not be obvious to them (tools, some of my music stuff maybe) - probably worth trying to sell one way or the other.

C) Most other stuff - sell, give to good will, dumpster, whatever works for them.

I've been thinking about digital stuff - family videos and things that are all in some folder, in some partition, of some hard drive somewhere. Who would know to look for them? It's not like stumbling across a shoe box of old family photos - "Oh look, old family photos!".

-ERD50

 

[powerplay]

I've been thinking about digital stuff - family videos and things that are all in some folder, in some partition, of some hard drive somewhere. Who would know to look for them? It's not like stumbling across a shoe box of old family photos - "Oh look, old family photos!".

-ERD50

Couldn't these be shared now with any and all interested family members via a few DVDs, thumb drives, or such? If so then finding them digitally later would not be an issue.

 

[sengsational]

Couldn't these be shared now with any and all interested family members via a few DVDs, thumb drives, or such? If so then finding them digitally later would not be an issue.

Or if that would raise an eyebrow, just make a binder with those plastic sleeves, and put the burned DVD's in it, on a visible shelf, big letter on the side "home movies". That way if the big storm comes or you otherwise need to 'abandon ship', you grab the only thing you can't replace and head for the door!

 

[W2R]

Couldn't these be shared now with any and all interested family members via a few DVDs, thumb drives, or such? If so then finding them digitally later would not be an issue.

Yes, good idea. After scanning in all the family photos (including many old ones, some even back to the mid 1800's when an ancestor was a photographer), I annotated them and sent digital copies to my brother and to my daughter. Now I know that I am no longer the sole keeper of these family memorabilia and that is one less thing to worry about when a hurricane enters the Gulf of Mexico. I still try to protect the paper copies but honestly I doubt anyone cares about them much now that they have high resolution digital scans at their fingertips.

 

[sdtech]

We have and use extensively an older airplane. I don't think of it too much as an asset, but someday when I sell it (10 years?), my annual expenses to maintain/store/insure will go down. Flying it is the cheaper part!

 

[Midpack]

Of our other assets, home and cars are excluded from net worth. Art, jewelry and one car might be sources of additional net worth if needed. If we had a second home we'd consider that net worth. And boat will definitely be part of net worth one day. Like others, all our other property would amount to less than 9% of net worth, by design.

 

[aja8888]

We have and use extensively an older airplane. I don't think of it too much as an asset, but someday when I sell it (10 years?), my annual expenses to maintain/store/insure will go down. Flying it is the cheaper part!

A single friend of mine has a fully aerobatic Citabria and calls it his wife and three kids.

 

[ERD50]

RE: Originally Posted by ERD50 View Post

I've been thinking about digital stuff - family videos and things that are all in some folder, in some partition, of some hard drive somewhere. Who would know to look for them?

Couldn't these be shared now with any and all interested family members via a few DVDs, thumb drives, or such? If so then finding them digitally later would not be an issue.

Or if that would raise an eyebrow, just make a binder with those plastic sleeves, and put the burned DVD's in it, on a visible shelf, big letter on the side "home movies". That way if the big storm comes or you otherwise need to 'abandon ship', you grab the only thing you can't replace and head for the door!

Yes, those are good ideas - I think my point was that one has to do something, some action is needed. Just leaving those files laying around isn't the same as leaving a shoe-box of photos laying around. Not obvious at all what is on a hard drive. Heck, most of mine are formatted in ext4, and I'm not sure a Mac/Windows will even read the directory w/o some added SW - I do plan to change my 'archival' HDDs to a more general formatting mode.

I'm leery of the life-span of burned DVDs though. Even a hard drive should be refreshed after X years (copy files to another freshly formatted drive, re-format and add the old drive to the rotation), the magnetic levels decay with time. A skim of some articles seems to indicate flash is not for archival use (the memory is just an electrical charge on a tiny capacitor - it is relying on the substrate maintaining a very high insulating level).

I'm in the process of digitizing some of my old cassettes of some personal audio projects - so this will be a good time to set up something. A few of these will be shared in 'the cloud' and some friends/families will have links. And of course, you always should have multiple back-ups - something people rarely did with old photos, and that is easy today.

-ERD50

 

[Tom52]

Other valuables, none considered part of our net worth.....

super nice Chevy Impala SS convertible, worth at least $20,000
spare car parts, all have value if sold on ebay, maybe $1,000
sack of pre 1965 silver coins, over $2,000 scrap value
mechanic tool sets and cabinets, maybe $700
Collection of a dozen Martin acoustic and Fender/Gibson electric guitars and amps at least $10,000
a few antiques, trunks, vending machine, etc, maybe $1,000
recently inherited Swarovski lead chrystal figurine collection, value to be determined, but could be worth a lot. Probably over 500 pieces.
Recently inherited home and contents, my share should be $75,000 to $100,000 upon sale.