revisiting on death gun bequests please...

greencobra

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I've touched on this before but let me get it straight. on my death, I have a pistol I want to give to a good friend of mine. the prior owner handed it down to me when he was close to passing. I don't have a will and don't plan on making one soon until some financial blunders I've made correct themselves. can I write a notarized letter stating what I want to do and give a copy to my buddy, keep a copy with the gun and put one where it would be be found upon my death? I'm just not ready to let go of the gun just yet or I'd do the obvious thing and just transfer it now. I'm trying to let the vultures know that particular pistol is off limits when the expected safe raping begins. what do you think? and no, I'm not expecting to expire anytime soon.
 
One of my closest friends ‘sold me’ his Python and Diamondback. Deal was if he wanted it back he paid me what I paid him. If I needed money he got first right of refusal but only at the original cost.
He knew I’d never sell it and cherish it forever. He wasn’t wrong.

We didn’t need to write a damn thing down.

In OP’s case YOU NEED A WILL. They are very cheap unless you’re complicated but even at that running your estate thru probate is just f***ing stupid no matter how you look at it. That will cost more and open more Pandora’s boxes than you ever imagined.
 
Always have a will….and a letter of intent….and a healthcare proxy….and a durable power of atty setup

But you dont list out tangible personal property in the will, you do that with a ”personal property memorandum” and you refer to that document in the will. That way you can keep updating that w/o the need to update the actual will (saves you a couple of bucks)
 
You never know when it's your time. It could be in 5 minutes, or 30 years. Plan accordingly.
I’m coming up on 61. Two friends that I grew up with nearly my whole life dropped dead where they were standing. Each was a year in front and behind me.

I knew a few of the guys on the rescue that whacked the younger with every damn drug they had on the truck.

Click. Click. Silent. Don’t forget it.
 
Not an expert, but isnt this one of the main benefits of a gun trust? Its just a more formal way of describing what you want to do (notorized letter).
 
When you die the vultures are going to come out and pick Corpse clean.. Give it away while you’re alive what the f*** do you care happens if your dead…. I’d be buried with my guns in accordance with my will. But instead I’m gonna get cremated, I want you to flush me down the the closest dive bar toilet you can find
 
I've touched on this before but let me get it straight. on my death, I have a pistol I want to give to a good friend of mine. the prior owner handed it down to me when he was close to passing. I don't have a will and don't plan on making one soon until some financial blunders I've made correct themselves. can I write a notarized letter stating what I want to do and give a copy to my buddy, keep a copy with the gun and put one where it would be be found upon my death? I'm just not ready to let go of the gun just yet or I'd do the obvious thing and just transfer it now. I'm trying to let the vultures know that particular pistol is off limits when the expected safe raping begins. what do you think? and no, I'm not expecting to expire anytime soon.
You and I live in different states so an FFL will have to be involved... (Kidding)

You could "on paper" transfer the gun to him now but keep possesion of it.

Depending on your home life situation you might have to make it known that pistol is your friends property, should something happen.
 
You could "on paper" transfer the gun to him now but keep possesion of it.
This. Transfer it to him now with all the required paperwork , and have him "loan" it back to you. Leave a note in your safe that it's his gun on loan to you along with a copy of the paperwork.

But you still should do a will. My wife tells stories about extended family racing back to their parent's home immediately after the funeral to grab what they could out of house.
 
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One other option, probably the best.

Write a will now, bequeathing the pistol to your friend and add whatever else makes sense in your current situation, then when you get your financial house straight, rewrite it.
 
We celebrated my MIL's (mother-in-law) 90th b-day yesterday and she relayed a story about a stuffed bear sitting in the corner of her living rooms...yes, a real one. She worked for the lad who shot it and a million years ago and while everyone was still alive he said in passing to my MIL "do you want the bear"? My MIL said absolutely, so on the spot he wrote up on a piece of scrap paper that the bear is going to my MIL and the gun that shot it is going to my FIL. All at the table signed it and the waiter in the restaurant witnessed it. A few years later the lad died and my MIL produced the note. The families lawyer verified the signatures of all and the bear showed up at my MIL's office in NY city. Unfortunately, the bear and create were too big for the elevator so they uncreated on the street and she rode up in the elevator with the bear. The gun was in a case and she tossed it the trunk of her car and drove home to NJ. Yes, she still has her NY LTC. The gun sat in the attic for 30 years and I drove it to MA a few years back. Its a really nice 7mm Weatherby Magnum with very few rounds down the tube. When she retired the bear now named Elmer came home to NJ with her. If I outlive my MIL it will be in my living room at some point. This was a long way of saying get it in writing or give it to your friend now. In the mean time good heath to you.
 
Always have a will….and a letter of intent….and a healthcare proxy….and a durable power of atty setup

But you dont list out tangible personal property in the will, you do that with a ”personal property memorandum” and you refer to that document in the will. That way you can keep updating that w/o the need to update the actual will (saves you a couple of bucks)
I have a written will, health care proxy and a durable power of attorney. When I asked about willing my firearms to my licensed children the lawyer said that I would need to contact a firearms lawyer, I should have asked him for references.

How do I go about doing this personal property memorandum, and can I add firearms to it.
TIA
 
You can also set yourself up a gun trust… But I think they kind of works if you’re leaving your shit to one person. I’m pretty sure a will would cover it to you it’s just one of these complicated things.

I have to restructure my gun trust. The person that would get some of my stuff is just such a a**h***.
 
Not an expert, but isnt this one of the main benefits of a gun trust? Its just a more formal way of describing what you want to do (notorized letter).
Yes but not in MA. My understanding is a trust may not own firearms in MA. IANAL.
I will place many of my guns into the trust but it really was started for NFA stuff.
 
I have a written will, health care proxy and a durable power of attorney. When I asked about willing my firearms to my licensed children the lawyer said that I would need to contact a firearms lawyer, I should have asked him for references.

How do I go about doing this personal property memorandum, and can I add firearms to it.
TIA
IANAL...but a firearm is like any other piece of tangible personal property.

Build a detailed inventory of assets, our attny said pictures helped, and indicate who gets what. Most of this is jewelry; so a copy of the appraisals is with the document, but we dont list appraised values in the inventory because it is all a point-in-time snapshot. The appraised value just gives us an approx weighting to items...to keep things fair.

The file can be updated, but the name set - because that is what called out in the will. The most recent version of that file is how assets are allocated
 
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