Guns upon one's passing

For the second time in my life I'm involved with helping survivors deal with distributing firearms upon the passing of the owner. My dad only owned one when he died and it came to me.

This last man-we became acquainted through his small business-didn't have many friends with firearms knowledge and I was honored a number of months ago when he asked if he could name me as the responsible party in his will to handle this. Well, he passed a few days ago-not unexpectedly and he's no longer suffering. Thankfully he had them listed with the new owners names attached and his ex-wife was also named to make sure they go to whom he wanted.

Thankfully she's a wonderful lady and they had a good relationship from their divorce right up to his end. Meeting her this Saturday to get the ball rolling, not looking forward to it.

The last time was 6 years ago when one of my best friends very unexpectedly passed. His widow was a real mess, understandably, and asked me to help sell them off as finances were a very serious issue. He had his ffl but let it expire 10 months prior as he couldn't continue the business. The local ATF office was incredibly helpful, I spoke to the agent that did his home inspections-he was truly sad as well upon hearing the news. He even picked up the 4473s and log books personally to make it easy on the widow. The remaining firearms were his personal guns which made it easier to sell and raise funds for his widow.

I know when my own time comes my meager few will be split between my sons-both thankfully enjoy the same interest/hobby in guns. One more example of having plans in place.

It’s always a bummer. It means someone left us and someone else is probably hurting because of it.
You are lucky to only have had to do it twice. Good on you for doing it, though.

I've never thought about this and I'm totally ignorant about it. So say I pass away and I have no will. What happens to my guns? Does my wife just assume possession? Does she have to do some paperwork or is it just like "gifting" your guns to a family member (this is my guess...but government and all that).

Time to draw up up a serious will - been on the list of things to do for too long anyway.

My plan is to liquidate all of my assets before my demise. Of course a sudden, tragic event could ruin that plan.

I’ve always thought about asking someone trustworthy to take possession of my firearms upon my unexpected passing and sell them for what they’re worth so my poor wife won’t have to deal with it.

What’s that joke? Something about when I die please sell all of my guns for what they’re actually worth and not what I told my wife that I paid for them.

I don't really have anything that isn't a dime a dozen or worth anything special, so it wouldn't matter what happens to them any more than it'd matter what happens to the rest of my tools.

My will has a firearms section in it. Most of the people in it already know whats coming their way. And I gave them the out of selling what I give them if they don't like it. None of the "I cant sell this gun because a dead guy gave it to me and I have no desire to shoot/own this thing."

I figure my bride wont want to deal with the bullshit of getting rid of stuff, so I did it for her, with her blessings.

I did the same for a couple from our church. The wife's father had passed away and he had a few Browning rifles and shotguns that she wanted to get a value for and possibly sold. She had the weapons with her since her other two sisters weren't interested. I helped her with the market value, but she elected not to sell them because of the sentimental value.

Hadn't thought much about by current collection. My wife or son can sell or distribute as they desire. I have a list of each firearm and the price I paid for them as a reference should they decide to sell.

My wife bitches about this all the time. "What the hell am I gonna DO with all this shit?" Guns, accessories, reloading tools and supplies, lead bars, Harley and parts, Willys Jeep and parts, tools, and on and on.

My wife is under specific instruction that when my time has come I'm to be cremated so that (most of) my firearms will fit in the coffin with me. Who says you can't take 'em with you!?

That being said Doc45, good on you for helping the loved ones through what must be a tough time especially considering they likely wouldn't know where to start when it came to the firearms.

I have a small spreadsheet with the guns, make model, serial, current estimated value and where it came from. I updated it now and then with additions/sales.

Told my wife, if nobody wants any of it, just sell it. Hopefully the kids will want a few of the items, especially the sequential serial number heirloom stuff.

I've dealt with it twice. Both collections were rather meager and had plans in place for who gets what.

Here are a few articles that I saw recently that might be of interest:

https://seniorfan.com/2015/03/when-y...ok-at-the-law/

https://seniorfan.com/2015/06/who-ca...he-law-part-2/

Most of the wording is about CA, but it might be some useful info for you in there.

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Originally Posted by GilpinGuy

I've never thought about this and I'm totally ignorant about it. So say I pass away and I have no will. What happens to my guns? Does my wife just assume possession? Does she have to do some paperwork or is it just like "gifting" your guns to a family member (this is my guess...but government and all that).

Time to draw up up a serious will - been on the list of things to do for too long anyway.

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The no will has been discussed a few times. If there's no will everything goes to probate . EVERYTHING......... I as others have suggested you talk with an attorney who deals with wills, estates, etc.

Here's the deal. IF what ever you own including property (homes, rentals, guns etc) is not IN WRITING, Notarized, blah, blah, blah. It doesn't mean jacksquat who you said gets it. It's in Probate no if's and or buts.

Then i suggest you take all your investments (bank accounts, ira's, retirement, investments) and have the POD (Payable on Demand) paperwork from each venue done.

Go to the county and do what ever paperwork is needed to have surviving family member[s] take possession of. Still needs to be included in the will, but this paperwork gives the survivor title w/out having to pay what ever taxes they feel they owe on it.


Medical

Living Will

Living Trust

Power of Attorney.

Include in the paperwork that needs it what your wishes are IF you are on life support.

Will they tell the Dr There's no Life Support.

If on LS how long before being unplugged, feed through a tube for how long if at all, keep on O2 how long, if at all.


There's a shit load of things one needs to do most if not everyone takes for granted. Under the belief of Well i told my kid, wife, ex-wife, neices, nephews brother/sister they could have X. Again not in writing, PROBATE.


Example. Our dad changed his will a few months before passing on, to make sure the low life piece of shit brother was excluded from any and everything.

SURPRISE............. even though he was no longer in the will BY law (N.Y.) the attorney acting on behalf of the family was required to contact or attempt to contact the brother to see if he had nay objection to the home being sold. This needed to be done before house sold, even though he was not included. Had he said No i have an issue, it would have tied up the sale for who knows how long.

Back to the house. Any permits pulled, pending, not completed must be signed off before sale.


WARNING: as one gets older some decide to do a reverse mortgage. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCE SHOULD ANYONE DO THAT

What a cluster fuck scam they run. If someone in your family mentions it. Bang ther head in to a wall or with a hammer till they com to their senses, or die . Hopefully after all paperwork has been signed.

But that's a whole nother thread.

Added as a seperate reply so it didn't get lost in th elast rambling.


Death has happened. Are you getting buried or cremated ? If buried where is internment, what kind of service, casket etc ?


WE went with cremation. I suggest you look in to the Neptune Society. Why? Because if you travel anywhere other than in state, they handle everything.

If you never plan to leave the estate, find a local crematory and talk with them.

Going the burial route. Start planing AND paying on it now. The last thing a family member needs to deal with after a loved ones demise is the headache as well as insane cost of a burial and or service.

If you are a resident of Colorado, own no real estate in your individual name and your total estate (outside of pay-on-death bank accounts, IRA accounts with beneficiaries, insurance policies) is less than about $67,000 then a probate is not required in Colorado. Regardless of whether you have a will or not. Actually had an estate planning consultation recently where the person I was talking to was not going to need a probate opened until we got to listing their firearm collection which .... well, put their estate's value well north of that threshold when compared to rough estimates of value. That was a bit of a surprise to both of us.

There are times when a probate is a good idea even when the above is true. I have opened probates in some such cases, usually because a particular creditor needed to be dealt with on shorter time frame.

I am not a big fan of pushing everyone into a revocable trust, even though I make a lot more money off of drafting them than simple wills, unless there is a specific need. Probate in Colorado is not as onerous nor as expensive as such places as California.

I am also not a huge fan of beneficiary deeds for trying to avoid probate for real estate. Had too many issues with those not being done correctly and the result becoming a mess more expensive to resolve than the probate would have been.

As for distributing firearms from an estate, that can get complicated thanks to the conflicting requirements of state and federal law. Sometimes the answer changes firearm by firearm in an estate.

I’m glad to see the continued conversation on this topic, excellent points have been raised. In my latest situation everything was laid out in the gentleman’s will, his ex is the executor, she’s a cpa that has an estate attorney as one of her clients.

I too implore you all to have a proper will drawn up if there’r family/friends you want to provide for after your death.

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Originally Posted by Doc45

I too implore you all to have a proper will drawn up if there’r family/friends you want to provide for after your death.

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That. Pay the money, do it.

But if I'm married and we have no kids... what's mine is also her's. I don't understand how the state can take "her" items unless I somehow put it in writing before I die that her stuff (which is partly mine) is her stuff. What is the point of getting married and joining all of our finances and worldly belongings?

I, too, am glad this thread is suggesting some items to start considering. Since I am coming up on 82 years of age and have had seven(7) different cancers in my past, I figure I ALMOST have one foot in the grave. Recently ordered a headstone for the Wife and I and will pay for it as soon as it is completed and set. Going to run around $2,700 and our plot has been paid for about 30 years ago. Gonna be roasted in the crematorium so Wife can hand carry me to the resting spot, about 100 miles from our current location. Want to keep this “celebration” as simple and cheap as possible. No church Mass, no wake and one simple prayer when the urn is placed in the ground. American Legion will fire off a few blanks and the few relatives then can get together after burial for a lunch with an OPEN BAR. No memorials wanted as would rather have folks buy something for their family with that money so their family can all enjoy it.

Not that he’s near deaths door but my dad is no spring chick. He’s already added me to his bank accounts and we’ll likely being drawn up a power of attorney(s) allowing me to make decisions on his behalf and deal with any property he may own should there come a time when he is no longer capable of making his owns decisions for whatever reason.

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Originally Posted by Jer

But if I'm married and we have no kids... what's mine is also her's. I don't understand how the state can take "her" items unless I somehow put it in writing before I die that her stuff (which is partly mine) is her stuff. What is the point of getting married and joining all of our finances and worldly belongings?

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You of all people should have already spent the money on a lawyer to avoid what one assumes is passed on to family members. Technically if there's no written legal document, the state assumes there's no heir to take possession of said goods. So they (with great pleasure) assume the mantle of what ever the legal name is, and part out your stuff.

Hint. It's all about the money. One more way the state screws you after death.


TLDR version. Don't be cheap when it comes to ones possessions you'd like others to have, after your passing one.

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Originally Posted by Jer

But if I'm married and we have no kids... what's mine is also her's. I don't understand how the state can take "her" items unless I somehow put it in writing before I die that her stuff (which is partly mine) is her stuff. What is the point of getting married and joining all of our finances and worldly belongings?

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Colorado is not a community property state. Colorado's intestacy laws would indeed result in your spouse receiving all. The state will not take any of your property.

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Originally Posted by Jer

But if I'm married and we have no kids... what's mine is also her's.

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That's my situation. My wife has zero interest in my guns or rather extensive fly rod/reel collection but she knows who gets what and is going to be eager to get it all moved along to the intended victims.

If we both croak at the same time, it's all spelled out in legal documents, which have now been dismissed by various posters here so I guess Hickenlooper is going to need to take up shooting and fishing upon my demise as CO has a bunch of stuff coming their way if the state gets it all.

We have wills, trusts and all of that. I have a friend who will sell the guns for my wife. He now has some health issues. I worry i may be better off than him. Then what does my wife do?

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Originally Posted by 10x

We have wills, trusts and all of that. I have a friend who will sell the guns for my wife. He now has some health issues. I worry i may be better off than him. Then what does my wife do?

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Find a backup you trust.

Easier said than done. Most if those i trust are way older than i am. Oh well I'll keep looking.

Had a lawyer tell me once:
"One micro millisecond after you die, you don't care anymore."

[Coffee]