'They should have their butts kicked': Dave Ramsey says this Oregon woman's ugly fight with her siblings proves you need a detailed estate plan — and yet boomers are putting off writing wills

Vishesh Raisinghani
'They should have their butts kicked': Dave Ramsey says this Oregon woman's ugly fight with her siblings proves you need a detailed estate plan — and yet boomers are putting off writing wills
'They should have their butts kicked': Dave Ramsey says this Oregon woman's ugly fight with her siblings proves you need a detailed estate plan — and yet boomers are putting off writing wills

Planning for life after your death is unpleasant and easy to put off. And even those who eventually get around to the task of estate planning can leave some loose ends untied.

Sheryl from Medford, Oregon, called in to the The Ramsey Show to give a prime example of this dynamic. Her mother passed away recently, leaving a trust for her farm. But even though the terms of the trust held that she and her siblings were to divide the estate equally, family discord has nonetheless ensued.

Don’t miss

“They should have their butts kicked in for not doing this properly,” Ramsey responded, referring to basically the whole family.

Forget doing it properly — an increasing proportion of boomer America is failing to do it at all. Between 2008 and 2018, the percentage of Americans older than 70% who have wills or trusts dropped from 70% to 63%, according to research out of Boston College.

Here's how Ramsey thinks the aging population should be handling their business for the sake of posterity.

The situation

Sheryl is in her late 60s and happily married. When her mother passed, she left behind an estate Sheryl claims is worth $2.2 million. The farm property is held in a trust, according to which the assets are to be split evenly between Sherly, her brother and sister.

However, Sheryl’s siblings have invested in the property, adding some buildings over time. And that’s created disagreement about a fair split. “How is that [equal split] fair if they put money into it and you didn’t?” Ramsey asked.

He said he believes the siblings and mother should have outlined specific terms about how the estate would be divided, given the fact that some have contributed more than others.

“Let me tell you, the whole idea that they would build a building on someone else's property without having everything lined out in the trust in detail was pretty stupid because it sets up a big argument,” he contended.

A lack of estate planning is pervasive. As of 2023, only 34% of all Americans had wills, according to Caring.com’s 2023 Wills and Estate Planning Study. About 40% of the remainder without wills said that a medical diagnosis would encourage them to make an estate plan, but roughly one in four said “nothing would motivate” them to do so.

Read more: Thanks to Jeff Bezos, you can now cash in on prime real estate — without the headache of being a landlord. Here's how

The solution

Ramsey said he believes the trustee (Sheryl’s brother) is legally mandated to follow the trust terms and split the assets evenly. However, trusts are complex structures and the level of flexibility a trustee has depends on the trust’s terms and state laws.

Nevertheless, Ramsey believes the siblings could come to a mutual agreement on a split that they would accept as fairer. For instance, they could separate the fair value of the properties built by the siblings over the years and then split the leftover value equally.

Ramsey said this would be the “ethical” solution.

All adults should have a will

Then there is the general question of who should write a will.

“If you're 18 years old or older you need a will, period!” Ramsey said. “It's what grown-ups do, and by the way, the government's going to end up with a bunch of this, too, if you don't.”

Depending on the size of the estate, beneficiaries might owe estate taxes on a state or federal level. A formal plan could potentially minimize this tax liability.

You can also minimize liability and confusion by updating the will everytime there’s a major life event. Sheryl’s family, according to Ramsey, should have revised the trust when the siblings invested in the property with new additions.

In fact, the Ramsey team and his family get together every year for a meeting titled “If Dave Dies This Year.”

“We sit and talk about my death for an hour and a half,” he said, “[and about] what has changed since last year in the operation of Ramsey.”

Ramsey’s net worth is estimated at $200 million with a reported $150 million in real estate, according to TheStreet. Given that kind of nine-figure wealth, an annual succession planning session isn’t just pertinent; it could prove the best path to avoid the kind of infighting Sheryl’s family has dealt with since losing their mother.

What to read next

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.

Advertisement