Many wealthy individuals set aside time to sit down with an experienced estate planning attorney to talk about how their bonds, stocks, private equity and more are passed down to heirs. However, they frequently leave out their art collection and do not allow beneficiaries to have the appropriate information to have it valued and protected. 

The Art Basel, Miami Beach BS Study called ‘For the Love of Art’ showed that up to 87% of current art collectors intend to pass their collection down to their children, but nearly 60% have not told their heirs how to sell it, appraise it or manage it. The UBS study was part of a bigger research project, looking at more than 2,400 investors that had at least a million dollars in investable assets. For the purpose of the art collection study, 363 art collectors were evaluated.

Many children of art collectors do intend to keep the art that their parents pass down, up to 81%, in fact. However, less than half of those art collectors have even had their art appraised, which is a crucial step for protecting the valuable pieces now and well into the future.