Update
Well, my decision was made somewhat easier.
Last week, my brother went by to check the house and found the door broken. Someone had broken into mom's home and ransacked it. All of the valuables had already been removed by family members, but that didn't stop them from dumping everything out of the drawers and closets.
They also broke into my dad's garage, apparently looking for tools and metal they could sell. They took an air compressor, a tire balancer, a band saw, some stainless steel, and some of my car parts. My brother didn't know what car parts had taken, just that there were fewer parts in the garage than what had been there earlier.
He called the police, who came out and took a report.
My brother came back the next day, and they had already been back. This time they stole mom's large Craftsman riding mower (27HP Garden tractor if my memory is correct) and probably some additional metal.
I went down the next day with my oldest son to see what had been taken and to move stuff back to Raleigh. As best I can tell, at a minimum I lost a nice 72 GTO fender, a nice 71 Trans Am fender, a pair of 77 Firebird doors, and a 70-72 A-body rear bumper. There were about six or seven fenders left, all with the inner fender wells attached. I suspect the thieves didn't take these because they took up too much room. I may have lost a few additional fenders, but I'm not sure.
It could have been worse. I had a "coffin" in the garage, which is what we call long thin wood crates I got from my former employer. They used these crates to ship telecom electronics from Sweden to the US. These boxes use a special tool to remove the lid, although they can be opened with a good pair of pliers. The large box contained parts off a low mileage but rusty 70 T/A. The bright blue seats and door panels were in the box, as well as engine brackets and pulleys, the carb,shaker, and exhaust manifolds, and the original Rally II wheels.
My son and I moved everything of value to my house and his house where I'll go through it and get rid of some and put the rest away. If anything, this showed me that it's probably not safe to store my valuable car parts in a rural location. After this, I have no interest at all in buying mom's property from my siblings.
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