...wills continued
The whole will process has a fundamental problem. As far as I'm concerned, people in "the will-making biz" should be marketing to my family/friends, since they are the beneficiaries (literally and by definition).
Therefore, I have a new (very capitalist) concept:
I will sell my current assets at discount to be dispersed upon my death. It's a great deal for both buyer and seller. On that note, I'm opening up the bidding on my stuff - pennies on the dollar.
For example, you pay me $1,000 right now for my car (it's worth $10k+). Correspondingly, I put you in my will for it. Assuming I die today, you make out like a thief. Since, I could buy a new car or (theoretically) have this car until I'm 80 years old, this $1k investment is a rip-off. Therefore, the will can be updated whenever the buyer chooses. If you want to terminate the contract - done. I give you your money back (without interest), you get removed from my will, and you can always write-up a new contract with me another day.
This concept combines predicting life expectancy and investing. It closely mirrors some ideas of life insurance: the younger one is = less chance of death = higher the buyer ROI = more risk = less bidding wars.
Am I a capitalist? Yes. Is this greedy? I don't think so. Why should I feel bad about getting paid for the things that I'm giving/selling you? I'm giving you a deal. This not the greatest option for both parties. If any one's going to make money off my death, I'm going to be a player. It's my stuff after all.
Potential Problems:
- Like a bank, sellers should be required to have a certain percentage will purchases liquid in case of contract termination, since refund and will update should (ideally) occur ASAP.
- Selling assets (terminating the contract and collecting on the interest) to change buyers has a negative effect. If there is a preferred buyer, they should outbid the current buyer or they should be willed your asset outright (at no cost).
- This concept, in the wrong crowd, could breed collusion and ulterior motives. Getting killed for my stuff is not a goal. To avoid this, I will only sell so much percentage of my assets to one party and require very confidential records on each side. Maybe this is the risk you run by trying to capitalize in this manner.
