Gifts of Tangible Personal Property.

What about personal items like Grandmother's china or your Dad's favorite fountain pen? How do you give gifts of personal items after you pass away to your loved ones?

One way to do this is to create a separate writing alongside your Will. California Probate Code Section 6132 allows for a separate writing incorporated by a testator to their Will to make specific gifts of tangible personal property. This Code Section allows you to give gifts of personal items up to a $5,000 value of a single item and include as many personal items so long as the aggregate value is no more than $25,000 for these single items.

This separate writing can be done either before or after you execute your Will.

It is a nice way to keep a small list who is to get what without having to involve your attorney every time you acquire another valuable item of personal property or change your mind about who gets what.