I recently ran a community 5K. My time will remain undisclosed. But somewhere around mile two, I started thinking about a different kind of race, and how it shows up in estate planning.

It shows up as heirs' property, an issue that disproportionately affects Black landowners.

Heirs' property is land or a home passed down without a will, a trust, or formal probate. When someone dies without a plan, the state decides who inherits. These default rules are called intestacy laws, and they divide ownership among relatives as "tenants in common." Each heir owns a fraction of the whole, and no one holds clear title.

A clouded title has real consequences. Heirs often can't get a mortgage, use the property as collateral, or easily qualify for disaster and agricultural assistance. Worse, a single co-owner, or an outside investor who buys one heir's share, can ask a court to partition the property. That can force a sale of land a family has held for generations.

Heirs' property can affect any family, but its roots run deep in Black communities. Under Jim Crow, discriminatory legal and financial systems shut many Black families out of estate planning and gave them good reason to distrust the courts. Passing land down informally became the practical choice, and many families are still living with the results.

This issue is personal for me. My very first legal job was researching heirs' property for the Charleston Trident Urban League. Since 2000, I've served clients of every background, and helping families avoid this tangle with clear, intentional planning is the most meaningful aspect of the work I do.

If you've inherited family land, or you own property you want to pass on without leaving a mess behind, let's talk. Schedule your discovery call today.

What Do You Want Your Family to Remember?

When you think about the legacy you’ll leave, money and property may come to mind first. But the things your family will carry with them the longest are often the things that never show up on a balance sheet: the values you lived by, the stories you told, and the care you showed the people you love.

A thoughtful Life & Legacy Plan helps you pass on all of it. Yes, it protects your assets. It also puts your wishes in writing, names the people you trust to make decisions for you, and gives your family a clear road map so they’re never left guessing about what you would want.

Clarity is a gift.

If you ever become sick or injured, or when you pass, your loved ones can spend their energy supporting one another instead of sorting through uncertainty.

National Estate Planning Awareness Week runs October 19 through October 25, and it’s the perfect time to start the conversation. Estate planning isn’t just about documents. It’s about peace of mind for you and the people you love most.

Ready to think about what you want your family to remember? Schedule your discovery call, and let’s build a plan that reflects the life you’ve lived and the legacy you want to leave.