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Estate planning or lack thereof
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Glenn Dye
Posted 10/15/2014 07:37 (#4127455)
Subject: Estate planning or lack thereof



Appomattox/Fredericksburg, VA
Dear friends of AgTalk. I need some input and maybe just need to get this off my chest. I'll try not to make this a long post. My grandfather (Dad's father) was the oldest of 10 children (6 boys, 4 girls). Granddaddy, Olinger and Lafayette all had to drop out of school to provide for the other children and work the farm. Their father was institutionalized and their mother couldn't do it all. They sent money back from WWII to pay to keep the farm. $17 a month I was told. He drove a trash truck on the nearby Quantico Marine Corps base. When he retired he helped Dad who was doing custom work and renting his own ground as well as helping the 2 brothers that had cows on the homeplace (110 acres). He passed away in '99. Dad is an only child so granddaddy's 1/10th of the property became Dad's. One of the "Dye Brothers" as they operated under, Lafayette, passed away unexpectedly in 2001 with no wife or heirs so his 1/10th got divided amongst the other 9 evenly so it became a 9-way split. Yes crazy I know. As others have passed away, their 1/9th goes to their heirs.

Well we lost my other great uncle Olinger (the other half of Dye brothers) that had the cows still, a little over 3 weeks ago, he was 92. Believe it or not he raked every acre of our first cutting hay. He was superman. He was paying the taxes on the land, raising the cows, with the sales as his income. Dad, myself and Olinger's son have made the hay and taken care of them and fences as his health deteriorated. That leaves 5 siblings living now. Youngest being 75. Well the oldest living sister called Dad after the funeral about cutting the electricity off to the old homeplace house, which hadn't been occupied since Lafayette passed away in 2001. In the conversation Dad mentioned trying to settle everything up as it had been brought up amongst the living siblings. All agreed it was time and needed to be done. He made it known that he would like to purchase the farm.

Here is when you find out just how close family really is. The 110 acres is assessed by the county at $1.1 million. 43 acres pasture, 51 or so open in crops and hay. The rest wooded and the house and barn site. Road frontage on 2 sides, high development pressure where we are. The disagreement comes to the cows. Well it comes down to that so important dollar really. The way my Dad and Olinger's son see it, the cows should be passed to Olinger's son and daughter. A few of the siblings believe they should be the "estate's." When Lafayette passed away it was maybe 25 cows. Olinger has increased numbers from that. Not sure of the exact cow number. Need to go check them when the rain passes. Dad owns the bull and one cow. He owned the previous bull as well. It just baffles us that they can stake claim to cows that they have no invested capital or time in. When Dad mentioned the fact that we made the hay for them, the response was "well that was part of Olinger's responsibility and agreement with the cows." No agreements were made, no paperwork signed on any of this. That's the number one problem. They never asked for anything while he was living but now that he is gone it's different. I have 41 acres of soybeans on the other open ground. Olinger let me "rent" that for the help that I provided throughout the year with the cows.

The youngest brother even asked about the few acres of timber. What it was worth as he wants it harvested before the estate is settled.

The oldest sister and youngest brother are scheduled to meet with an estate lawyer on Monday to try and sort this out. It was said that they hope no one ends up mad when it settles out but they're just kidding themselves with 13 heirs now involved.

It's an absolute mess and I've dreaded this day for years. I'm 29 and have a 6 month old son that I'm afraid won't get to work the same land that my ancestors did back before the civil war. I don't have a dog in this fight as Dad is granddaddy's heir but we work together every day. And frankly I'm tired of seeing him pour his heart and soul into things and continuously getting walked all over. I'm worried for his health as he hasn't slept the past 2 nights and has high blood pressure as well. I can't stand to see him in tears like this but I guess it's just a fact of life. He said a man told Olinger when he was a kid that "Son, when it comes to money family don't mean a thing." I am shocked to see my family verifying that statement.

Sorry for the long dialog but I tried to give as much info as I could so someone could relate and give their input. I'm afraid I already know how this is going to end. With the view from my house looking at a subdivision on my family's farm.

Thanks for listening.

Edited by Glenn Dye 10/15/2014 13:56
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