By Nneka N’namdi and Aisha Snead
From – https://afro.com/
Reprinted – by Texas Metro News
Did you know that death facilitates the greatest transfer of wealth? Over the next 25 years, $67 trillion will need to change hands. Death and estate planning are topics that many Black Baltimoreans shudder to think about. However, confronted by the reality of higher rates of mortality, we must be intentional in making plans to handle our affairs in the event of sickness or death. These plans should include what we want to happen with our property after we take our last breath.
Our mortality rates are high in a country where we were once considered property in an estate. This has a profound impact on how we live.
Are we living in a home that we legally inherited from our ancestors? How did our family members write down their wishes for care if they could not make decisions for themselves? Did they decide what would happen to their belongings once they died? Are we paying the lowest taxes and fees on the transfer of our belongings to our descendants?
More often than not the answer to all of these questions is “no.”
Nationwide, roughly 70 percent of Black families surveyed in a study released in 2022 by Consumer Reports revealed they had no will or estate planning documents in place. That means nearly two-thirds of any possible wealth among Black Americans is sitting in limbo with the state and local municipalities.
In Baltimore, we know from research by Fight Blight Bmore, in partnership with Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service and Baltimore Neighborhood Indicators Alliance, that there are more than 3,000 properties where one or more owners have died but the deceased person’s name remains on the deed– resulting in future legal difficulties for their heirs. Many of these heirs properties are multigenerational family homes in Black neighborhoods.
Though many of us aren’t passing down our homes properly, we are passing down the trauma of losing them and suffering repeat displacement. This has our “fight/flight” response in a “frozen” state, an Epigenetic Trauma response that may be keeping us from beginning the process of Estate Planning and costing us more in the long run.
Are we suffering the subconscious memories of our stolen ancestors and their stolen property? It wasn’t until the 1866 Homestead Act, that all Black people could legally own property in the United States. Prior to that, Black Codes like the 1827 Maryland Occupation Acts made it difficult for Black people to own property of any kind. Despite these difficulties, as early as 1798, there were eight Black property owners in Baltimore.
However, limited access to lawyers and protection under the law created barriers for Black property owners to leave assets to their heirs. Sadly, this is still the case. How many of us have family stories of loss through “land grabs” like “Ground Rent,” “Squatter’s Rights,” “Tax Sale,” “Eminent Domain” or “Urban Renewal”? Would estate plans have stopped tyranny and terror 150 or even 50 years ago? Probably not, but in the present, the cost of not having an estate plan is too heavy.
Financial “experts” and Politicians both use buzzwords like “generational wealth,” yet continue to create and support laws that increase vulnerability of property loss for Black people. Black wealth remains in a continual cycle of loss, as Black families are typically starting every generation at zero. 43.8 percent of Black wealth is attributed to homeownership. Not having an estate plan can result in the loss of a family home, any equity and thereby that family’s largest source of wealth.
If a property owner requires long term or skilled nursing care and they receive Medicaid to cover medical costs, the program can place a lien against their home for the cost of the care and can eventually force the sale of the home in order to “recapture” their money.
On the other hand, in cases where the homeowner has created a life estate without powers (Life Estate Deed), the deed can protect their home. The catch is you must have the life estate in place for 5 years prior to needing long term or skilled nursing care. Then Medicaid can no longer legally place a lien on the property or force its sale. This is but one example of how not having an estate plan can be too costly. There are also property transfer fees and taxes which can be avoided with proper estate planning. A quick and easy way to avoid the costs and complications of transferring assets after death is through beneficiary designations. These state who should be paid upon death (POD) on all accounts (insurance, retirement, investment and any bank accounts) and who should receive vehicle transfers upon death (TOD).
There is a misconception in the Black community that estate planning is for the wealthy. This is false. Estate law applies to all without respect for income or net worth. Even if you don’t own property, estate planning can be used to define your care if you’re no longer able to make decisions for yourself (advance medical directive and living will). A financial power of attorney (POA) assists you with legally designating a person to take care of your finances while you are living and unable to, and much like the family Bible, you can use estate documents to create a historical record regarding your life and death, known as a will.
Taking the time and energy to plan for our death is one of the ways we can begin to address the trauma of property theft and displacement. It also relieves our loved ones of the burden of making these decisions for us so that they may begin to grieve. Without these plans, Black families are left at the mercy of the law to decide who should get what and how much it will cost them to get it. Estate Planning is a kindness to your loved ones, and promotes unity within families. It is planning your legacy. So, let us be self-determining and make choices that support our dignity. We can’t leave it solely to the law.
You may be eligible for no cost estate planning services. For more information, contact Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service.
