Wealth of Wisdom

CHAPTER 19Managing a Shared Family Property

Jamie Forbes

Legacy family properties can be a powerful grounding force. It's rare these days to have one place that remains constant throughout our lives. Many people move away for school, then to an apartment, and then to a larger house with the arrival of children. The average U.S. citizen moves more than 11 times in their lives.¹ Americans tend to move more than residents from other countries, but the fact remains that most of us move multiple times throughout life.

Having a home to which you can return through all those transitions provides a sense of place, a connection that remains unchanged amid all the other changes in life.

Such a place can be a huge gift. As someone with a shared family property that has been in my family for eight generations, I know firsthand that sense of belonging to a place and to the people who share it with me.

And yet, as anyone who has ever shared a property with other family members can attest, it takes work. There can be conflict that, if unresolved, can fester and upset family relationships. For this reason, many advisors recommend selling family properties instead of passing them on to your descendants and hoping they can figure out how to make it work.

Perhaps selling is the right thing to do for your family. But before you make that decision, it's worth considering what makes the most sense. This really needs to be a group discussion that includes everyone who will be responsible for the ...