To add another dimension to this, estate planning! Please think ahead and discuss with family, as it will save your family a lot of grief and potentially angst when (not if) you pass.
I was the sole executor for both my parents, my Dad passed some 30 years ago, Mum only 3 years ago. Both had wills, well sort of. Dad's was a hand written very simple document and met all the requirements save one very important bit the "attestation" clause - "the action of being a witness to or formally certifying something." i.e. the witness's identification other than their signature. Mum's was a generic "will kit" that thankfully was "complete" and had not been "tampered with." Apparently a simple innocent act such as removing staples to "photocopy" the will then re-stapling the document can be very problematic legally!
Both wills were simple, sell up & divide the proceeds equally between their three children, as Mum & Dad had divorced prior to Dad's passing. Sounds simple except for the very strong sentimental connections each of us had for specific items. My sister wanted Mum's recipie book. My brother asked for some "heirloom" books of Dad's. For me it was a very sad thought to sell of all of Dad's hand tools for a paltry sum, when they had an almost priceless value to me as I had used all of them working alongside my Dad who was a Registered Builder. I would have sacrificed all of the $$$ to keep them, and I said so. I still use Dad's Stanley hand planes daily!
Fortunately we all agreed that for some items the sentimental values were far more important to each of us than the real world small $$ value they would attract. I had Dad's tool's valued at "retail rates" by a registered second hand dealer who we all knew and trusted and adjusted the distribution accordingly.
With Mum, she down sized a couple of years before she passed, so we assisted her to hold a garage sale over a few weekends to de-clutter. Very sad to see a houseful of stuff fetch virtually cents on the dollar on "current replacement values."
It seems that some things just do not sell, Bohemia crystal ware, fine china dining settings etc. Very expensive luxury items in their day, now almost valueless. Same can be said about specific hand tools, very limited potential market, something my friends father had recognized with his collection of motorcycles and restoration parts.
