whew! thought you were talking yard sale instead of auctioning off the pieces! hope you get a tidy sum for those wonderful pieces...

i might see if any if any of the grands might want a piece or 2, but other than that, i do understand...

i have some pieces of decorative lenox that dh had bought over the years..but only about 10...told him to quit when they went "made in china", and glad i did...

do find a reputible auction house..depending on the face and quality, the toby jugs seem to always get decent prices...

Amen! I could not agree more! We have so many sets of expensive silverware in our family and no one wants them much less uses them. Same for china and God knows what else. It seems no one entertains very formally any more and they sure don;t want to be polishing silver and handwashing the fragile china.

My mom has collections of very fine things and I know it is her fervent hope that someone will want them and appreciate them like she does. I do not know who that someone will be. I'll keep a few things (Boehm birds) but it will fall to me to get rid of the rest for a fair price, a headache I don;t need. I hope they make her happy now.

isn't sad though, we don't "dress" for sunday dinner or use pretty things as much anymore? my ggrandparents whose family lived in kansas, on the border of oklahoma, did...

my ggrandma was a simple farmer's wife, but were well off enough to have 2 sets of china...i have the feeling much was purchased thru sears catalog, as her china was noritake nippon (well before ww2)and the one round oak table i have, has markings on the bottom in numbers (like a catalog)

guess the day they decided everything was opened on sunday, was our last getting out special things for dinner...at least my one dd is training her kids to have table manners...i often wonder about the other grands, sigh...

Yeah it is sad Susan.. hubby's family were very "out there" as far as keeping up appearances. So much so that his dad leased a Mercedes (we thought he owned it) and found out he was lucky they let him lease it. By listening to him brag, you would have thought he had money coming in hand over fist. Ha!
I take the stuff to the auctioneer on Monday. Don't worry - oldest brother has plenty of stuff they kept if any of their kids want it. Won't see them offering to sell anything though.
I just found a set of dishes at my mom's place that were probably her "good" dishes. They are going to auction too. I had a good set I bought at auction and sold the same way. Our houses are not like the days of old with unlimited cupboard space in the "well to do" houses. I don't ever remember using those good dishes of moms.
I found in his aunt's things a sterling silver water pitcher - that was similar to one sold for $700. That should go a long way toward keeping her dish network.

I'm pretty fed up with my brother. He is the Sole Executor of our late mother's estate. She died last January. He held an estate sale, got rid of a lot of keepsakes my sisters and I wanted (old school papers, things of no material value). Now he's living in the house, has registered the deed in his own name, and says he's too "depressed" to have anyone visit or take any of the remaining belongings, mostly old pgotos. He says he's considering putting the house on the market, but as sole executor, we obviously can't rush him. I am planning a visit to his area in the summer (a niece is getting married) but I have no reason to believe I'll ever see any thing from Mom's house. I took a few things while Mom was still living, but I'd really like those photos.

Oh Jannie - that sucks. Hugs. Hopefully your story is a warning to others who might be in the same situation. Are you a beneficiary? Isn't there a time limit on these things by law? Mom's lawyer grabbed control the minute she died and we had no access to any money until the estate is settled which is next week.
Best of luck.

I always feel so sad when I hear stories like these. My mom passed away in 1992 and my dad in 1999. My two brothers and I went through the house, naming things each of us would like to have. Of course, there were many things that more than one of us wanted. We pulled a set of dice out of a game and used it to decide who got what. No arguments; no hard feelings.

My parents passed away in 2001; the house where we (siblings) grew up in has always been in my father's family. When he died, there was only a nephew left who accepted a settlement. My mother left the house to us four siblings. Three of us are married & live elsewhere - my brother who still lived in the house (he is unmarried) refused to let the house be sold. He is still there and does not maintain it very well. It is a large, two family house but he has never put the other side up for rent, yet complains he does not have the money to put into it! My other brother never wanted to push things so over the years we have let things remain as is to avoid a family split. Very frustrating!

How true - things and cultures change, over the years, partly resulting in some people's treasures ...

... are others' ... less than treasures. Especially when the others are of a succeeding generation.

And if you think that the differences are major for this generation - imagine what it'll be for the next, with not only the surface things, but more of the deeper issues of our culture changing so much more rapidly.

Hi Nancy Lee,

Shouldn't it be that, if your mother left the house to the four of you equally, that either the current sibling who's resident buys out the other three of you, or pays you 3/4 rent, or interest on your share of the value of the house, either of which would likely increase over the years.

Or - sells it, then pays everyone his/her share.

If he doesn't like that scenario ... what does he have to offer as an appropriate alternative?

Maybe the others of you could arrange for a bevy of skunks to take up residence in the currently unoccupied portion of the dwelling?

Good wishes for getting an appropriate resolution to the issue.

ole joyful

the solution seems simple, ole joyful, but since my brother maintained he had lived there all his life and we were selfish in suggesting he move out or pay us, we were in the wrong! He has even asked that we pitch in to help with the maintenance... we haven't. Back then, the real estate market was strong and the house could have sold for several hundred thousand dollars. To get him to move, there would be a legal battle and my siblings decided, since they live in the same town it would be too traumatic for everyone. Its been over 10 years ago, so we've lived with the status quo.... & for the most part don't bring it up.

Jannie - Because your brother is not discharging his duties as executor properly, you or any of your siblings can petition the court to replace him. If he was to distribute the proceeds of the estate then his fiduciary duty was to see that his estate sales were divided amongst you. You cannot just sit back and allow him to squat after he has registered the deed in his name or your family will be in the same position as Nancy Lee's. See a lawyer and get your brother removed/replaced now.