“Roz I have a bike/watch/jewellery,
Do I need to plan it to will it away in my will?”
Usually when I get this kind of questions from my clients, the first thing I would always do is talk about a real life event that includes Reza Baharin and his Magic the Gathering (“MTG”) cards.
Why?
As we are dwelling into assets that are “non conventional”, unlike your typical stocks, real estate or mutual funds, these are tangible assets that are not the most traditional, especially when you speak about something like MTG.
Just for those that are not familiar, Magic/Magic: The Gathering/MTG is a collectible card game (owned by a subsidiary of Hasbro), that has been around for 30 years. The game boasts something like 40 million players globally and has over 20,000 unique card
SO WHAT?
Within the game are a bunch of cards that are considered ‘rare’ and powerful. But what they do within the game isn’t as special to me as a financial planner… it’s their FINANCIAL VALUE that has risen astronomically over the years that make these cards interesting. Of course, trading card games and collectibles like Magic aren’t new; there are always games that crop up from time to time (think Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh) but Magic is the old game that keeps on chugging away.
As a spouse to someone who plays Magic, I must admit that I know next to nothing about the game, except for when Reza told me about a box of his containing cards that were “valuable”. The collection is rather extensive, enough for Reza to even consider adding the cards into his will. Which brings me to the first aha moment for me as a financial planner: recognising that alternative assets like Magic have to be accounted for and treated as the valuable assets they are. In Reza’s will, there is even a clause specifying our friend Azhari A Razak who will be the appointed liquidator of the collection (if Miss N doesn’t pick up the game that is!). This at least protects the cards from just being discarded into the bin!
What I mean by valuable is taking an example of a MTG card called “Black Lotus”, over the past 30 years the black lotus that could open in packs of 15 cards for a mere USD 3 now it’s trading at USD 60,000 (Currently). Don’t believe me? check out the charts! (check out the picture in this post)
https://www.mtggoldfish.com/…/Limited…/Black+Lotus…
I am pretty sure if Reza had 1 black lotus card and I threw it away in the bin, he definitely would NOT let me be at peace lol.
Another interesting asset would be a bicycle. After getting some insight from my buddy Eric Cheong a cycling enthusiast, little did I know that the market for specialty bikes is broad in terms of design terrain, material and brand manufacturers. The value of 1 bicycle can mind boggle you and surely be heartbreaking if your loved ones/heirs decide to ditch the bike into the rubbish skip upon your demise.
One popular asset people tend to ask me is about watches and whether it’s worth keeping and willing it away. Easiest most straightforward case is looking at a Rolex. Plentiful of articles out there and also 2nd hand sellers that can vouch for the value (and appreciation) of the timepiece. Anything that has value and has a market demand especially when it’s in scarcity, this makes for an asset that has a value that appreciates over time.
For these items, some may be common to us , some alien to us.
But what’s important to know is, when there is value in the (correct) market, there will be a willing buyer willing to pay to the seller for the item. Another consideration is to plan for the asset in the event of your demise, especially if it needs special handling like in the case of the Black Lotus Magic Card.
So the simple answer to my clients question on whether your watch/bike/jewellery needs to be willed and planned for is YES.
#estateplanning #willwriting #nonconventionalassets #magicthegathering #LicensedFinancialPlanner #WFPD2022