Year End Reflections For the Family Cottage
A Reflection is defined as the “ability to look at something, including the thoughts and what is even beneath the thoughts and emotions-from a slight distance”.
We often “reflect” on the memories of the past year and note important and special memories
If you and/or your family is fortunate enough to own a family cottage , perhaps you are reflecting on the memory of a special family gathering and time spent at that special place. Perhaps you are envisioning your children, grandchildren and other family members being drawn back to the family cottage in the future to create more special memories.
As you think about the future of the family cottage, you should note that without careful planning the future of your cottage is at risk.
Regardless of the strength of relationships of siblings, grandchildren and cousins, conflict over a shared asset like the cottage is inevitable.
Conflicts often involve situations where a co-owner(s) may:
Decide he/she doesn’t want to continue with the co-ownership arrangement and demand a sale of his/her interest or the entire property.
Transfer ownership to a spouse (in-law) who acquires ownership based on the death of a family member.
Develop conflicts over use of the cottage as to when each co-owner has use of the cottage and also conflicts over rules governing use of the cottage.
Develop conflicts over decisions involving management of the cottage property such as maintenance, repairs, decorating, landscaping and such matters.
Develop conflicts over the financial affairs of the cottage including payment of expenses.
These types of conflicts don’t just blow over or resolve themselves. In reality, these conflicts result in hard feelings and lawsuits. Even worse , these conflicts often only can be resolved by a sale of the family cottage to a third party.
The good news is that all of the potential conflicts are avoidable and at the very least manageable by creating a detailed cottage plan to govern shared ownership between future generation owners. However, the challenge is to actually develop and implement a plan.
I have seen too many family cottages fall victim to a lack of planning where the parents or initial co-owners repeatedly told me that they needed to develop a plan but never followed through. The old saying “failing to plan is planning to fail” really is true when it comes to family cottages.
I can assist you and your family in developing a plan for your family cottage which is as unique as your family’s goals and provide for the continued use and enjoyment of the cottage for future generations.
