What should I do with my watches?

[popoki nui]

When I'm gone, I mean. Time to update my will, and I realized I have no plan for my collection. I never had children, and neither did my partner. Both our parents are long gone. She has no siblings, I have one sister who isn't into watches (and we rarely speak, anyway). None of my local friends are into watches, at least not at the same level of intensity that I am.
So what do I do with over 80 watches, plus drawers and drawers of straps, parts, and tools? Suggestions?


~Sherry.

[vinylgreek]

In doing our estate planning recently our attorney made the excellent point that items like watches and jewelry are best given to those we wish to have them while we are still living. That way both parties receive enjoyment. If there is no one in particular to whom you wish to bequeath them, then perhaps leave the entire collection to a charity?

[Ryan]

Were you saying in another thread, Sherry, that you volunteer somewhere? Perhaps there's a way to leave your watches to the organization you volunteer for or one that's close to your heart.

[underwatermechanic]

I would leave them to the charity but I would make sure that you wrote down instructions for them on how to get the best return for them. If the person who is dealing with them doesn't know what he has then he might sell them too cheaply.

[CamB]

I will be passing on any of mine to my son for sure.

[Henry Krinkle]

I am in the same boat as you, more or less. We are intentionally childless and no one else in the family is in the least interested in watches. At the present time we have instructed my favourite nephew on how best to dispose of them. I kind of like the charity notion though I am not sure that even with detailed instructions the average charity would do the work needed to maximise return.

[popoki nui]

The charity suggestion is a good one, and one I'd considered too. A good perceentage of my personal estate will go to the cat rescue charity I volunteer with, but it's hard to know how to get someone else to maximize the worth of all this stuff I have, especially, my rather ecclectic watch collection.

[CanadianStraps]

If you're the only one you know that could maximize the worth, and you would want them to benefit the shelter, maybe you should liquidate the assets yourself, and then put the money toward the shelter/charity?

[underwatermechanic]

I don't think the charity would struggle too much in this age of google to find a way of selling the watches off for a reasonable return. Its knowing that you have something worth selling in the first place that's the trick. To the vast majority of people if it doesn't say Rolex or omega on the dial its not even worth getting valued. If it comes in the middle of a large pile of stuff there is a danger the person sorting them out might just think "Second hand watches, not worth much"

[popoki nui]

If you're the only one you know that could maximize the worth, and you would want them to benefit the shelter, maybe you should liquidate the assets yourself, and then put the money toward the shelter/charity?

And therein lies the trick: keep them long enough to enjoy them myself, but maximize their value when I can't. I don't think the great dirt nap is imminent, so I'd like to keep and wear them while I'm on the sunny side of the topsoil. Buy one never knows.....
Guess I'd better talk it over with my lawyer.


~S.