The Other Assets Module
Real estate, precious metals, collectibles, and private investments — what the family owns beyond standard accounts, where key documents are held, and how value is established and kept current.
Where this Module fits
F-05 Module 5 of 6 in the Financial area — step 3 of 4 on the dependency ladder (System → At-Home → Financial → Estate).
Fifth — the real wealth that never appears on a statement.
Adds to The Secure Guide: Per-category assets with document locations and the appraisals log.
Adds to The Family Guide: That these exist, no values, and “don't sell before consulting”.
Every Module adds one section to each guide — that is how the two guides assemble as you work. See what you're building.
Text file — the flexible one. Use it as-is, paste it into a spreadsheet, open it in any editor, or paste it into an AI tool to reshape the blank form to fit your family: rename a field, add a row, drop one you don't need.
Print / PDF — the ready-to-use one. Print it and fill it in by hand, or choose Save as PDF and complete it in your own offline PDF app. Either way it stays with you — the finished Secure Guide template goes inside your Vault.
One rule: only ever give an AI tool the blank template. Never paste your real information — passwords, account numbers, anything you'd keep secret — into an AI tool, an online service, or anywhere outside your own Vault. Customizing an empty form is fine; filling it in happens privately, offline. That's the same rule this site follows: nothing sensitive ever leaves your hands.
Secure Guide Starter Template — Other Assets
This template belongs in The Secure Guide, stored within The Vault. It documents what you own, where key documents are held, and how to establish value. Asset values themselves belong in the appraisal section — not in The Family Guide.
Some of the most significant things a family owns never appear on a statement — and unlike a forgotten bank account, a deed in an unopened filing cabinet or a coin collection in the garage will not announce itself. The failure mode is quiet: title complications, a collection sold for a fraction of its value because no one knew what it was. The rule for the first pass: if you are unsure whether something belongs on this list, include it.
The tax dimension is worth one paragraph: inherited assets generally receive a stepped-up cost basis at the date of death — which can erase substantial capital-gains tax for your heirs, but only if the value at inheritance can be established. That takes a current appraisal or solid documentation, and it is why a one-line note like “do not sell before consulting the CPA — the step-up may be significant” belongs next to any appreciated asset. Your executor will need to substantiate values even in a non-taxable estate.
Real Estate
e.g., the rental, the cabin, the vacant lot that is easy to forget. The mortgage lives in the Financial Accounts liabilities summary; the rental's cash flow in the Budget Module; basis records and their retention in Tax Planning.
Repeat for each property.
Precious Metals
e.g., coins and bars held as bullion. Spot prices are public, but your specific holdings carry premiums a price lookup will not capture — the appraisal is the number that matters. Collectible coins valued as a collection belong in the next group.
Collectibles and Personal Property of Value
e.g., jewelry, art, antiques, the coin collection in the garage safe. The financial documentation belongs here; the sentimental instruction — who receives a piece and why — belongs in the estate documents. Cross-reference both.
Repeat for each category or significant item.
Private Investments
e.g., a loan you extended, an informal equity stake. Anything with a formal ownership structure — an LLC, a partnership — belongs in the Entities Module instead.
For formal business interests and ownership structures, see the Entities Module.
| Asset | Last Appraised | Appraiser | Document Location | Next Review |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Family Guide Starter Template — Other Assets
This template belongs in The Family Guide. It confirms that these assets exist and provides enough orientation for heirs to act — without including values, which belong in The Secure Guide.
In the matching Secure Guide section: per-category assets with document locations and the appraisals log.
That detail is what makes recovery possible — and it is protected in the Vault, which opens with The Vault Key. The key is never written here, by design. The people listed on this page know how it is kept, and the steward's job is to keep that path current, so this page never leads to a locked door.
We own the following assets beyond our primary financial accounts. Details, document locations, and appraisal records are in The Secure Guide. Do not sell, transfer, or distribute any of these assets without first consulting our estate attorney and CPA — tax implications may apply.
| Asset Category | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Name | Role | Phone |
|---|---|---|
Anything this page's reader should know that the sections above didn't ask for — the exceptions, the house quirks, the thing you would say out loud while handing this page over.
For more information on how to use these templates, see The Recoverable Family book.
Worked example — Frank's family
Five years ago Frank inherited a small rental from his uncle — a two-bedroom that covers its own mortgage with a little left over. It had never been appraised since the inheritance, and the deed sat in a filing cabinet Frank hadn't opened in two years. His grandfather's coin collection sat in the garage fire safe, value unknown. Sarah knew the coins existed; she would have had no idea whether they mattered. Now she knows the coins matter — and the deed has an address.
All details are fictional and illustrative. The assembled example guides live at the example Secure Guide and the example Family Guide.
Secure Guide — Frank's entry
The Other Assets section of the Mercers' Secure Guide — values rounded:
Real Estate — the rental
Precious Metals
Collectibles and Personal Property of Value — the coin collection
Private Investments
| Asset | Last Appraised | Appraiser | Document Location | Next Review |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cedar Court rental | 2026 | Licensed real-estate appraiser | FrankSecure → Financial → Appraisals | 2029, or at any refinance |
| Coin collection | 2026-05 | R. Whitcomb, Westvale Coin & Estate | Same folder + paper copy with the coins | 2031, or on significant market movement |
Family Guide — Frank's entry
This entry sits in the household reference binder. What exists and who to call — no values.
| Asset Category | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Real estate | Our home + the rental on Cedar Court | Deeds in the safe-deposit box at Westvale Savings |
| Collectibles | Great-grandpa's coin collection — garage fire safe | It matters. Appraised 2026; don't sell a single coin without the appraisal in hand |
| Precious metals / private investments | One small family loan — details in The Secure Guide | Otherwise none — recorded so nobody searches |
| Name | Role | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| Ruth Alvarez | Estate attorney | 555-0177 |
| Marcus Lee, CPA | Tax — ask BEFORE selling anything here | 555-0153 |
| R. Whitcomb | Coin appraiser | 555-0129 |
| Elena Vargas, CFP® | The whole picture | 555-0146 |
Standing instruction: do not sell, transfer, or distribute any of these without consulting Ruth and Marcus first — the tax treatment of inherited assets can be worth more than the sale price difference.