Why Estate Planning Education Is Essential to Preserving Generational Wealth
Sep 26 2025
If you missed Urban Institute’s2.5-hour jam-packed webinar Untangling a Complex Problem: Preserving Housing Wealth for Vulnerable Owners through Technology and Estate Planning (or just couldn’t add one more Zoom to your calendar), fret not—we’ve pulled together the key insights for you.
This powerful conversation connected housing, wealth, and community stability. For those of us working to expand access to sustainable homeownership, the session was a clear reminder that estate planning is not just about legal documents. It’s about preserving family wealth, stability, and opportunity.
Key Takeaways
Wills and estate planning rates are declining, leaving many families vulnerable.
Racial disparities in wealth transfer remain stark—with Black and Latino families more likely to lose wealth in the transition between generations.
Heirs’ property and tangled titles are among the biggest challenges, making it harder for families to keep homes, access financing, or qualify for disaster recovery aid.
The Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act (UPHPA) is helping protect families, but much more work is needed.
Education and outreach are critical—from transfer-on-death deeds to simple will-writing resources, families need clear, trusted guidance.
Understanding the Challenges: Heirs’ Property, Tangled Titles, and Wealth Gaps
For many families, homes are the primary or only asset, making estate planning essential. Yet challenges like tangled titles, heirs’ property, and declining will-writing rates can put generational wealth at risk.
The panelists underscored that racial disparities in wealth transfer leave Black and Latino families particularly vulnerable. Without proactive planning, inherited homes are more likely to be sold below market value, families may lose access to financing, and disaster recovery funds can remain out of reach.
Policy Solutions Protecting Families and Their Homes
Opportunities for co-tenants to buy out a share and maintain family ownership
Preference for partition-in-kind over forced sale, considering displacement, cultural significance, and fair market value
These protections are particularly important in communities where homes are a major component of generational wealth, such as rural and urban black neighborhoods.
Using Data and Technology to Guide Interventions
While estate planning is a personal and legal matter, data and technology help organizations understand the underlying challenges that put families at risk.
LISC is using neighborhood-level data to identify areas where heirs’ property issues are concentrated, helping target interventions.
LISC Jacksonville is piloting an innovation hub that allows testing of outreach campaigns and educational programs to see what works before scaling.
Digital tools and online platforms are emerging to simplify estate planning, but access remains uneven due to the digital divide. This makes community trust and culturally relevant education essential.
Educational Initiatives Are Key to Preserving Wealth
Panelists emphasized that tools and laws alone are not enough. Families need education and guidance:
Teaching about wills, transfer-on-death deeds, and other non-probate solutions.
Explaining the probate process and options to avoid tangled titles.
Outreach tailored to language, culture, and accessibility to reach families most at risk.
Abraham Reyes Pardo, Vice President, Office of Housing and Diversion Services, Urban League of Greater Philadelphia shares how they put together a comprehensive program that convenes local groups, provides financial support, and educates residents about tangled titles.
Why This Matters for Housing Professionals
As housing professionals, we often focus on helping families buy and keep their homes—but estate planning determines what happens next. Without it, generational wealth is at risk. Homes can be lost, sold under market value, or tied up in probate for years.
In a recent survey, Framework asked nearly 300 homeowners whether they had an estate plan or will, and only 1 in 5 homeowners said they did. For homeowners who have been in their homes for more than 5 years, 1 in 3 have an estate plan or will.
That’s why education is key:
Helping families understand their options builds long-term stability.
Providing culturally relevant, accessible tools ensures communities most at risk aren’t left behind.
Pairing technology and community trust can close the gap in access to estate planning solutions.
The Path Forward
Promising steps already underway, such as research on tangled titles, peer learning networks, partnerships with technology providers, and messaging campaigns like Keep the Home and the Family. But it also called on all of us to play a role and forge powerful partnerships.
At Framework, we see estate planning education as part of the larger journey of sustainable homeownership. Just as we equip homebuyers with the knowledge to purchase wisely, we can empower homeowners to protect their homes—and their family’s future—for generations to come.
Looking to partner on creating a custom educational learning path that builds generational wealth?
