Saving the Family Cottage - A Guide to Succession Planning

I first learned of "Saving the Family Cottage: APart Two: Choosing the Right Path is divided into
Guide to Succession Planning for Your Cottage,four chapters that deal with how plans help, what
Cabin, Camp or Vacation Home" by Stuart J.happens when you don't have a plan, legal types
Hollander, Rose Hollander, & David S. Fry aof ownership such as Tenancy in Common, Joint
couple of years ago from a fellow attorney whoTenancy, Community Property, and a few others.
recommended it. This is a very good book if youThere is also a short chapter on using life estates
plan on passing on a cottage or vacation home toand ownership agreements.
your children, if you have inherited a cabin withPart Three: Cottage Plans in Action discusses the
siblings or other relatives, or you just want tolegal entities available for your cottage such as
know how to keep property in the family andpartnerships, corporations, and Limited Liability
reduce or avoid the squabbles over it.Companies. The book recommends LLCs, and
It's a short book of 188 pages, with a glossaryprovides guidance as to why and how to go
and bibliography that push it over 200. It is easyabout forming one for the purpose of owning the
to read and answers the questions you needvacation home. Chapters also cover topics like
answered regarding the topic, and providesscheduling and use, and renting the cottage.
guidance on how to best find solutions for familiesPart Four: Creating a Cottage Legacy contains
who want to preserve vacation homes fortwo chapters that provide some basic information
generations to come, especially when familyrelated to taxes and endowments.
members have different interests and financialIf you own a cottage, cabin, vacation home, or
situations. It also lets you know how to best usewhatever you want to call it, this book is a
a lawyer to assist you with the process.valuable read regarding the issues that arise when
Part One: Cottages at Risk contains threewanting to keep the property in the family. Use
chapters that focus on why you need a plan andthis guide along with your attorney to make the
what the first step should be, avoiding the worst,best possible succession plan to eliminate
and planning for the best. These chapters get youheadaches and troubles for you and those you
thinking of objectives and possible concerns.are leaving the property to.