Sorry to inject a rather morbid topic into the forum, however...

After much procrastination my wife and I are getting set to have wills drawn up. One thing that occurs to me is that while I would obviously leave my 914 to her, she would have no interest in it and would almost certainly want to sell it in the event of my (untimely) demise. I'd like to be as prepared as possible for that contingency to make things as easy for her as I can. One thing I need to do is make sure she's on the title so she doesn't need to wait for my will to be probated to take ownership of the car. What other things should I do? What kind of instructions should I leave for her to make it as easy as possible to sell the car without getting ripped off? Should I contact somebody local who can help her sell it? (I live in the Chicago area, so Brad Mayeur comes to mind.)

Thanks,

Skip

While I don't have advice, I can relate to this statement. After I die, I think my 914 would be right next to my vinyl album collection: at the side of the curb on the first garbage day after the funeral!

Paul

Ellen is supportive of my obsession, she's just not going to want the car if I'm gone.

Skip

LOL - no truer words were ever spoken Paul!

Sorry to make light of a serious question Skip - not all of us have wives as supportive as Ellen. Make sure she knows about this place and how to contact us. The last thing she'll want to be doing is talking to a bunch of car geeks but when she is ready this is a pretty supportive community who can help.

This is an excellent topic and one we should all consider important given the wacky obsession we have with these odd little cars, if we care about our surviving families. 914s are more and more a special interest car and not likely to be something your surviving heirs will know how to liquidate, much less want to deal with in your absence, and get a fair deal. There is a financial interest too, and it would be a shame for them to give these cars away for pennies on the dollar out of expediency.

Depending on your state laws, that surviving spouse should always be on the title as owner for just that reason, so they can sell it immediately or give to anyone they want expeditiously.

I have always thought it would be a good idea if at all possible, to pre-arrange with a local 914 buddy, local to you, to jump in and help when needed...a plan 'B'. Plan A is that you will be around to deal with it, but its comforting to know that a trusted local friend would come to the aid of your surviving family if needed. I would certainly agree to help anyone local to me if I could under that situation.

Find a local 914-friend and get their verbal agreement to manage anything 914-related in the event of your untimely passing. Sell to car, sell the parts etc. All that would be needed would be to include a signed note in your will with the 914-friends contact info to get the ball rolling.

I am not a lawyer so if this sounds like legal advice, its not...check your local laws for applicability.

Skip,
Jeff has given some excellent advice and I'll add a few observations based on first hand experience dealing with automobile titling issues.
Here in the State of Ohio, if you would want to avoid the extreme hassle involved in procuring a title in your name from that of the decedent, even allowing for a will granting you said ownership of the vehicle, the time and paperwork can be all consuming. The prefered method of titling a vehicle to avoid such hassles is to title it thus: "John Doe and Jane Doe, WRoS (with right of survivorship)." By doing that, the second party named could easily get the car titled in his/her name in the event the first person should die. Caution, this advice pertains only to Ohio titling issues. In Kentucky, a title can read "John Doe or Jane Doe" thereby giving each party the right and ability to sell/trade said vehicle.
Skip, I'd check with your states' titling/license bureau to see what they will or will not permit on the title. In Ohio, for instance, the BMV will not allow "or" on the title, only "and".

Paul

My wife, Janice, has always been supportive of my "obsessions", & they have been numerous. She has been my support crew for all Porsche Parades & has gotten as filthy & tired as I have. However, and assuming the 914 isn't on stands when I croak, she will drive it until it needs work - something I have taken care of for over 30 years. At that point, without our joint interest, I expect she'll (1)want to part with it, or (2) keep it languishing until she croaks. At that point it COULD go to my nephew, who would turn it into a hillbilly thing, since he's a hillbilly.

So, to keep it the original beast that it is, I'll ask her (do not mandate anything to my wife - EVER!) to seek this forum & sell it. It'd kill me to see it leave the family, but I'll already be dead anyway.

Seriusly, anything that has been a significant part of your life for more than half of it, is hard to part with. If I could, I'd be buried in it, but I know those damned seats would hurt after about 20 years & it wouldn't do anyone any good rotting in the ground.

So I pick.............to turn it over to when I'm no longer ambulatory.

Who would be the best steward of an original/unrestored (yes, it was painted in 79) 72 914? Of course, money would have to change hands. But, I won't be around to contest the price. You'll just have to deal with Janice, of Welsh background, who can squeeze the shit out of a buffalo nickel!

Actually, guess I should be buried in it, except I have a cremation clause & hate any kind of dust in my 914.

Oh, the worries. Oh, the torment! The horror! The horror!

Pat

As the survivor of a divorce I don't think I'll ever put a womans name on the title of anything I own. Did that sound bitter?
My ex-->

I'm an attorney. Estate planning is one of the areas I practice in.

Some things to think about:

1. You should be thinking about probate for all your assets, not just teeners. Any asset held in your name would generally need to pass through probate. That is why many people choose to do revocable trusts instead of wills. Trusts can be set up with you as trustee and a spouse as co-trustee or a successor trustee. Assets owned in the trust generally do not need to pass through probate. A will is a little simpler and easier at the front-end but then you have the time and expense of probate at the back-end. A trust takes a little longer and can be a bit more expensive in order to title/transfer assets into the trust at the front-end but then makes up for it with saving time and money at the back end with avoiding probate.

2. You may also want to consider setting up trusts for your children as well as guardians for them, especially if they are minors.

3. You may also want to consider provisions whereby a surviving spouse cannot "spend the wad" and leave the children with nothing. Or even end up whereby it goes to the surviving spouse's new spouse.

4. Finally, you'll want to consider having a power of attorney in place and a health care directive so that if you become incapacitated, it is clear who has authority to make decisions for you and what your wishes are in the event that occurs.

Congratulations on doing this. Everyone should and too few do.

I'd suggest that if you haven't already, you at least make an appointment with an attorney to discuss all of this in greater detail and get your questions answered.