This article is part of a special series sponsored by AARP called “Shifting Tides: Addressing Wealth Disparities and Intergenerational Wealth Transfer.”
Every day, I have the unique opportunity to see how the transfer of wealth—and wealth disparities—change the trajectory of individual’s lives and families’ futures.
Housing organizations, like Habitat for Humanity, have long tried to address the generational wealth gap by helping families access affordable housing. Homeownership is the foundation upon which individuals build economic stability and wealth to pass down to their loved ones. But a history of systemic barriers has limited homeownership and wealth transfer for low-income households and households of color in the United States.
Convening for Change
To explore and address these barriers, we convened a collective of community leaders and housing advocates over one year—including Black community members, housing nonprofit leaders, bankers, lawyers, public health experts, and planners from Minnesota, Texas, Kansas, Louisiana, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia and Michigan—to guide housing organizations on initiatives that support the creation and transfer of Black generational wealth.
Anita*, one of the group participants, has been a Floridian since 1956 and purchased a home with support from her sister. When asked what change she hoped would happen through the project, she said, “My hope [and] desire is we can educate our people so that they grasp the benefit of generational wealth, and how it can improve the future of their descendants.”
*Name changed for privacy.
Investing in Futures Through Homeownership
Although disparities in pay between Black and white individuals contribute to the wealth gap, owning a home contributes most significantly to an individual’s overall wealth for the majority in the United States. For Black households, home equity constitutes 60% of their wealth compared to 43% for white households. This suggests that white households hold more liquid assets, investments and savings, constituting a larger part of their wealth assets. This figure signifies the importance of retaining homeownership and the multi-sector approach needed to close the wealth gap.
Throughout our nearly 50-year history, Habitat has worked with Black families to achieve first-time homeownership. Unfortunately, some of the same obstacles to homeownership that existed for Black families at the time of our country’s founding stand in the way today.
‘Unfortunately, some of the same obstacles to homeownership that existed for Black families at the time of our founding stand in the way today.’
With the Advancing Black Homeownership initiative, Habitat seeks to ensure Black homebuyers have the same access to homeownership that others have had for so long. Non-Black families in need of affordable housing will benefit from these developments as well, moving us closer to our vision of a world where everyone has a decent place to live.
Unlocking Generational Wealth by Untangling Ownership
Another cause of lost intergenerational wealth for Black and Latino families is heirs’ property: a legal term used to describe the condition where land or estate is passed down through generations to multiple heirs who do not hold a clear legal title. More than 500,000 parcels in the United States are tied up as heirs’ property, representing roughly $32 billion in inaccessible wealth.
Jackson*, who has been married for 33 years, said, “What my wife and I built together is a starting point to pass down to our children. We want them to have what we didn’t have.”
When his wife’s parents passed away, there was no will. “Some family members assumed that it was theirs when it wasn’t. A brother and sister occupied the house. Long story short, it became an heir’s property, and my wife applied to be an administrator over the estate, which gave her some control,” he explained.
As disasters become more frequent and severe around the country, a national solution to heir’s property is even more important. Without it, these tangled titles prevent access to insurance, government aid, and critical repairs, amplifying economic loss and health risks.
In response, a new research initiative by Habitat for Humanity aims to generate culturally relevant, community-driven solutions to preserve intergenerational wealth, improve housing stability, and promote health equity for Black and Latino families in historically disinvested communities.
Resolving tangled titles not only protects financial stability—it has compounding intergenerational health benefits because of less chronic stress, better mental health, and safer living conditions for entire communities.
*Name changed for privacy.
Scaling Locally Driven Solutions
With intentional action and investment, all communities can benefit from greater wealth transfer. Locally led solutions are already creating more stable foundations for future generations in Louisiana, South Carolina and Minnesota, which have the power to transform communities if scaled.
Habitat’s “We WILL Leave a Legacy” program in Louisiana helps families create wills and similar documents to secure property and preserve an estimated $8 million in assets for future generations. Habitat is investigating legal mechanisms for estate planning to help create family trusts, ensuring that families retain access to generational wealth, especially in the aftermath of disasters like Hurricane Katrina.
‘We also have continued discussions with policymakers about solutions to ensure homeowners of all backgrounds can retain their homes and build intergenerational wealth.’
TheWealth Retention and Asset Protection Program in South Carolina assists homeowners in resolving legal barriers, such as inaccurate surveys and deeds to protect property value and prevent asset loss. Important strides are also being made through state-wide advocacy for the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act by organizing an Heirs’ Property Study Committee to assess the cumulative impact of heir’s property on Black households.
And in Minnesota, Habitat is integrating estate planning into the early years of homeownership, proactively addressing tangled titles before they occur, and educating families about home maintenance and financial well-being.
Spreading the Word and Building a Movement
Our year-long project where we worked alongside housing advocates and community leaders has spurred a national discussion. We created an interactive exhibit to educate even more people around the country about barriers to homeownership, wealth disparities and intergenerational wealth transfer, which has now reached more than 35,000 people at 14 events including SXSW (South by Southwest) and the ESSENCE Festival of Culture.
We also have continued discussions with policymakers about solutions to ensure homeowners of all backgrounds can retain their homes and build intergenerational wealth. This includes improving the reach and accessibility of fortified roof programs in states like Louisiana and Kentucky, promoting fairer property taxes in states like Michigan, Nebraska, New York and California, and removing lien requirements for recipients of home repair funds in communities like Asheville, NC. We have elevated these and other strategies for promoting resilient homeownership and intergenerational wealth in our new National Policy Platform. And with generous support from funders, we recently launched a new Homeownership Resilience Advocacy grant program to help resource the Habitat network’s continued state and local advocacy around these priorities.
Habitat remains committed to advocating for, conducting research on, and building solutions that lead to greater access to homeownership, protection of property, and intergenerational wealth transfer. Together, we build brighter futures.
Adrienne Goolsby, MBA, is senior vice president, U.S. Office and Canada, for Habitat for Humanity.
Photo caption: Ohio resident Leona Carmob, who attended Buckeye Ridge Habitat for Humanity’s Homebuyer University, on Olney Avenue, one of the streets that Habitat is working on in Marion, Ohio.
Photo credit: © Habitat for Humanity International/Meghan Cronin.
