In 1954 my Great Grandma bought an Oldsmobile 98, 2 door Holiday hardtop with ALL the options. Power everything, windows, locks, seats, steering, automatic, it even has the automatic headlamp dimmer. She passes on and the car stays in the family with various relatives having there turn with it. Always gets driven, sometimes gets fixed but is never modded or rodded. Fast forward to this summer and my Grandma passes away and leaves no will. THis leaves my mom and her 6 siblings to sort through the estate, including the car and according to the lawyers split it all 7 ways. So basically the car will be for sale at fair market value. Of course one of my aunts went online, did some research, and claims its worth 41K. Now it is a complete running and driving car in original condition. It is a South Dakota car and is rust free but has 54 years worth of road rash. Last I remember seeing it I thought it would need some body work and paint, a new interior, tune-up, tires and a bunch of clean-up. Oh yeah, it still runs and drives. Of course I told my mom that I want it but there is no way I can swing 41k. What do you guys think its worth? I told my mom they should have it appraised to determine market value. Was this a mistake? Perhaps they'll swing a deal to a family member? Of course I have no pictures, sorry. Hopefully the lawyers and/or Barrett-Jackson don't mess this one up for me, what do you guys think, am I totally screwed?
Just wait and see if somebody is interested in buying the car. If yes, see how much they are willing to pay... as a family member you deserves the right to buy it before others at least!
That what was thinkin! Thanks for the wiring kit, haven't installed it yet but it looks like it's pretty simple.
I just checked the completed auctions on ebay for the past month covering 53-55 oldsmobiles. You might want to have your aunt take a look there... Especially since she holds her self up as soo computer savy. Complete parts cars have been going for $650-1500 Running driving originals [rat rod style] for $2500-4500 [probably what you have] Nice originals and "fresh-painters" are going for $4000-6000 Back yard restos that are nice are going for $5000-10,000 And full restos that are ready to drive cross country and compete in a car show for $12,000 to $20,000 There's something very wrong with our hobby when our aunts and granny's think that the rust-bucket Hudson sitting behind the barn must be worth $1-million because they saw an eppisode of barret jackson. What "Aunt Gertrude" dont understand is that: #1, that car on BJ was an all original F.I. '57 black widdow. #2, that car they saw on BJ was rare and worthy of a million bucks, and... #3, that million dollar car probably had a two million dollar professional resto! If your Aunt wont back down after talking some sense to her, tell her to sell it herself... Let her learn the hard way that just cuz it's old, it AINT WORTH A MINT!
Fully restored the car isn't going to bring $41,000 unless it has a canvass top. In most cases like this items not claimed by the family is sold at an estate auction. That's what should be done here. Work out a deal with mom and her 1/7th percent and bid. You'll get it for a fraction of aunties guess in the described condition.
hey;If your aunt wants it pay 41 grand, sell it to her.. Keep the car between ya , and hopefully ONE of you end up with the car. Keep the lawyers and appraisers away. Estates are a good way to find out greedy your relatives really are..LOL Been there ,done it ,seen it.... 1939fiat
Here's an Idea, put it on the internet for 41K or best offer, give it a few weeks and then offer to match the best offer. Of course if your parents are cool they will not want their share so you will get it for 1/6th less than the best offer.
wvenfield is right - arrange to have it auctioned and MAKE SURE it is okay with EVERYONE if you bid, too. (Auctioneers will do this as long as it is established beforehand). You will get it for next to nothing. When my Grandmother died they auctioned off all kinds of things that various relatives wanted. Most of it sold for next to nothing, and a couple things literally sold for $1. So now Cousin Gertrude is bitter for life because Clair's sons wouldn't let her have the damn angel tree, and it sold for ONE DOLLAR at the auction! In 1984 I bought a 1954 Pontiac Chieftan Deluxe with 40,000 miles on it. The car had been carefully stored since 1970. I got it for $600, and the previous owner's grandson was practically weeping because he wanted it so bad but the family insisted it be auctioned. I'm sure there was an Aunt involved who convinced them it was worth $10k. (The Grandson got the shaft because family members could NOT bid at that particular auction. DON'T LET THIS HAPPEN TO YOU!!) A longer, but safer way to do it would be to just advertise it for sale and keep lowering the price until someone makes you a genuine cash offer, and then match that offer. Either way, the family knows you paid as much or more than any stranger would have, and you have the car you want. Anyone who grumbles at that point is a greedy selfish bastard and should be banished from all future family gatherings.
Unless your family was the model for "Ozzie & Harriet" or the Cleavers, you're screwed. Even with a legal will, settling an estate brings all sorts of ugliness to the surface. Been there ,done it ,seen it....
I'll bet she looked at NADA Guides.com. They say that is the high retail value of the car with air and automatic.
What something is worth and what they will pay determines its true value...I agree with putting it up for sale and see what the best offer is and then you should get the option of buying it less 1/6th of that price...if you are not careful the lawyer will toss his or her briefcase in the passenger seat and drive off with it
And if you can't bid on it at the auction, find a buddy who's not a relative and loan him the money to buy it. Don't be the guy who missed out on the '54 Pontiac. We're going through a hassle on my grandmother's estate because she cut two of the grandkids out of the will - the no good kids from my uncle's first marriage that no one's even seen in 25 or 30 years, cousins I didn't even know existed until I was like 20 myself - so they have to sign off on it, or we have to go to court to make sure they stay cut out of it. On the bright side, the old car in her garage is mine -
Everyone is being civil so far and we all get along, which are good things. My mom is letting my aunt know that we should have it appraised and that I am interested. Pretty sure no one else is really interested but you never know. When my mom said 41 last night, I said 4100, just like most of you guys. Either way I want to at least go get a better look at it and some pics, so you all can have a look too. Like I said this isn't just any old car, it's a part of our history and family. Sell it to some one besides family and it turns into just another old car.
No way near 41k. There was a niiiice local one here for sale, it was a nice mild custom but some body bubbles/rust coming through. Nice chrome, 41 lincoln doorbuttons, nice interior, 3x2 setup, Continental kit, radial wide whites and duals, it was a real nice head turning car and I think it finally went for $12k or so. So, long and short, Id say that car is worth around $6k or so. Maybe a hair better.
WTF!? You're the Great Grandson. Shouldn't you just get the car for FREE if you want to keep it, drive it and not turn a profit. Enjoy a little piece of family history. No offense, but unless your aunts/uncles are really that greedy or in need of cash, I would think a little reasoning should make it yours. Good luck! A few tears from your right eye and some warm words of nostalgia wouldn't hurt.
I just added this thread to my favorites list. estate auctions, relatives, fun stuff.......... I remember my uncle bidding on my grandma's stuff and everybody else just stoped bidding. (why would you bid against a guy that was getting a third off) my aunts and uncles are all gone now, but my moms still bidder about it. good luck
"No offense, but unless your aunts/uncles are really that greedy or in need of cash, I would think a little reasoning should make it yours. " I've been involved in a few estate windups. No will = really big headache. Some family disputes are worse than business disputes because they are personal. Rather than getting in a fight over the price, get a realistic appraisal and if the family still plays tough, put it up for sale with first right to offer slightly more than the highest bidder. It's probably worth $4-6K if it needs everything. Put an ad in the paper for $10-12K and see who comes out.
Getting a real appraisal from a real appraiser is probably the best first step. Especially if you don't mind paying true market value. That way you have something ON PAPER saying "This is what the car is worth." Just make sure it's a genuine appraiser, and not one of the yahoos used to giving widly inflated numbers for jerks who want to insure their car for three times what it's worth. Don't even haggle about getting 1/6th off - just pay the full amount and you'll get the money back when the dividing of the total estate takes place. People just don't realize how complicated it is after they die. I plan to give everything away before I die. It's so much better for everyone.
Another thought: CONTACT AN ESTATE ATTORNEY. Pay their fee to talk to them (just yourself, not the whole family). See what they advise. Everything a non-attorney says (including me), even when it's based on recent experience (like me) is just guessing. Rules vary from state to state. Talk to an attorney. An expensive one! A few hundred bucks to talk to an estate planner at the beginning of my Dad's death would have made the next two years much more pleasant. (Both my grandmothers and both my parents all died within a 2-year stretch. NO ONE talked to any attorneys about anything, and MISTAKES WERE MADE. Do NOT dick around - find someone expensive to tell you how to go about getting that car without alienating everyone else.)
No, he has to buy it. Otherwise every family member will always resent that he "got" it and/or resent whatever he does with it. It needs to be HIS, fair and square and with everyone getting a little piece of the pie.
This is what my mom and aunts and uncles are working on. They do have a lawyer who is helping them sort through things. Also one of my aunts works at the local bank and has been involved with this sort of thing many times before and is aware of the many legal ins and outs of this situation. Believe me, this will go down to the letter of the law. I also have 19 cousins on that side who may also be interested and would be turbo pissed if it was just given away to me. The part of this that I may have going for me is that this is only one thing and it is probably one of the smaller parts of the "pie".
If the car has been passed from person to person over the years so everyone could enjoy it, maybe you could convince them to sell it to you at a slightly lower than market value price on the grounds that you will own it and take care of it, but if an aunt/uncle/cousin wants to take it out for the weekend sometime, they are welcome to do so. That way it stays in the family. It must have sentimental value to at least a few of your relatives and im sure they would like to keep it in the family.
We have a car that was my grandfather's. nothing special, but it is a super low mileage 85 Honda Civic. when he died, it was like new, after 10 years of ownership. My mother and aunt are the only children he had. So what they did, instead of selling it, or giving it to one of the grandkids (6 of us), was to let anyone who needed it use it. But with the stipulation that if it breaks, you fix it, and you cannot ever sell it. I think all of us have used it for a year or so at a time, and there have been no squabbles about it. I'll probably end up with it, since everyone else is rich now and won't ever need it. Maybe you can present that to your family.
Based on your description of the car, and being an owner of a 1957 Olds I can assure you the car ain't worth $41K, much too high for the condition. A friend sold his 57 Super 88 covertible with the J2 option for $54k a couple of years back. And while his was a 57 and not a 54 98, his was also consistent AACA 90 point car. At that time the price was near top dollar, so $41K is very questionable for the described condition. A numbers matching 54 98 in excellent condition, might fetch $37K, but substantially less if in poorer condition. Now if it is a ragtop, and in excellent condition it could bring upwards of $50k. But it ain't. I would do a lot of research for values based on condition. With what you say it needs, I probably would go any higher than $12 - $15K. If you keep it original with orginial paint, interior, drive train, etc. you could easily put another $10 to $15K in it to get it to your desired point.
Telling the family to put it up for sale to get the best offer and then match it is a bad thing to do. WHat would we call the family that did this. Here is a possible post on the HAMB fo rhtis situation. "Hey guys, I wonder what you all think? There was a 1954 Olds 98 listed for sale on the internet. An unrestored one owner car that needed some attention but runs and drives. I got up Saturday morning and drove 2 1/2 hours to look it. Blah, blah, blah (description here). I made a fair offer on the car but I couldn't get any sort of committment from the seller. FInally after much prodding they told me that the car really isn't for sale that they were simply trying to determine the fair market for the car to sell to the ladies grandson. What do you think about that"? No what would that family be called here by fellow HAMBers? I'm guessing many things that wouldn't be repeated at the next family reunion. It's a bad idea. Don't jerk people around like that. Auction it and be the high bidder or get an appraiser and be prepared to pay what he says.
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