Downsizing is a Challenge

Downsizing is a challengeDo you have a problem with downsizing? Overwhelmed with the details of handling a loved one’s estate? You may find this video helpful.

“Estate Property Distribution and Downsizing,” presented by Karen Hyatt, owner and manager EstatePros LLC, can help you get a handle on what you need to do when faced with dealing with a deceased loved one’s home and everything in it. In addition to the checklist below, she talks about properly storing items for preservation, making a floor plan for what to keep when moving to a smaller place, modifications for aging in place, and she provides tips to help you decide what to keep and what to let go.

Her presentation was one of the 2021 Before I Die New Mexico Festival sessions, held in-person in Albuquerque.

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A Downsizing Checklist

Karen ran through a checklist of things to do when downsizing an estate:

  1. Inventory what you have.
  2. Get appraisals for jewelry, artwork, currency, silver, memorabilia, books and other items of value.
  3. Gift items to people you’d like to inherit specific pieces while you are still alive.
  4. Specify what items go to beneficiaries.
  5. Use consignment shops to sell some items.
  6. Make donations to charities for tax-deductible contributions.
  7. Deal with digital and paper documents.
  8. Properly dispose of items such as hazardous materials, medications, firearms, electronics, and recycle when you can.

Karen is the owner and manager of EstatePros, which is based in Santa Fe. EstatePros has helped families and individuals downsize, organize and distribute the contents of estates since 2011. Their website is www.EstateProsNM.com.

This presentation was part of the 5th annual Before I Die New Mexico Festival, held October 30 to November 2, 2021. The Before I Die Festival concept brings together entertaining and educational elements to start conversations. Events are designed to prompt baby boomers and their millennial children to plan ahead for end-of-life issues.

Festival Sponsors

2021 Festival Sponsors

Thank you to these companies and organizations that made the Before I Die NM Festival possible.

A portion of the sponsorship proceeds and ticket sales from the Before I Die NM Festival were donated to 501(c)(3) charitable partner, Historic Fairview Cemetery, established in Albuquerque in 1881. The cemetery is the final resting place of 12,000 individuals, with remarkable stories reflecting the history of Albuquerque, New Mexico, and the United States of America. The website is www.HistoricFairviewCemeteryABQ.org.