SteemAlive Presents: ProWritersHub (W2)||Family inheritance - How to handle it and protect future generations?

Hello peeps.Welcome to my blog once again.I am pleased to register another entry in this week's contest.This time,I am writing about family inheritance.

In life we all inherit one thing or the other from our parents or grand parents.For instance,our ancestoral lands,farms and homes in the village passed from one generation to another,this is a form of inheritance.

It is also worthy to note that every parent intends to leave something for the children and it continues like that.Children too expect to inherit one thing or the other from their parents.This is known as patrimony.

How is the family property shared in your hometown?

In my hometown,family inheritance is shared according to gender and then age.The male gender are given preference and sometimes the female children are not given any share.They are always left empty handed.The reason is that,it is assumed that the female children will get married to another man,and so they have little or no inheritance in the family house.

The patrimony is shared among the male children according to age.For example in my hometown,the first male child assumes full ownership of the fathers house once the father is dead(i mean the house in the village oo).

As for other properties like land,it is shared between all the male children and the first male child also gets the lion share.

What challenges have you seen when parents (especially the father) is no longer there?

One of the challenges is that if the properties were not shared while the man of the house is still alive.It causes problem because the first son maybe tempted to cheat the younger siblings. Sometimes the younger ones might try to usurp the position of the first son and this will result in bad blood.

What steps should parents take when they are still alive to prevent fights when they are gone?

It is true that parents cannot say exactly when they will die.It is important that parents write a WILL-which will state how their properties would be shared in the event of their demise.Better,still parents can share their properties when they start getting old so that each child will know his inheritance as soon as the man kicks the bucket.

Do people in your hometown respect father's will?

Yes.They do.But there is still this fear factor that the lawyer can manipulate the will once the man is dead(although not true).So it is preferred that the gentleman share the properties when he is still alive

Well we haven't discussed anything about will in my family.However,I know what belongs to me in the family and my sibling also knows his.

Give us any personal experience regarding sharing of family inheritance. Be detailed.

Well I have not had any first hand experience on this particular matter.However,I have seen how people in my village share their properties especially land.

The land is divided among the male children and the first son picks first.Then the next follows.The family house automatically belongs to the first son.And the other male children are given land outside the compound to build their own house.