Program Design: Building Blocks for Planning
A PHASED FRAMEWORK
1
Understand the Local Context
- Hold preliminary discussions with key stakeholders, particularly community organizations that can act as trusted messengers, and with potential legal services partners. In LISC’s experience, these kinds of partners are often aware of the issue of heirs’ property but are hungry for a convening space to come together and discuss solutions.
- Conduct a policy or legal scan to identify how probate and inheritance laws function locally or statewide. Be aware of and understand the expected legal process timeline for resolving heirs’ property and key anticipated pain points. This exploration is particularly important to set expectations about what it takes to achieve resolution.
PRACTITIONER TIP: Consult a local legal services provider for a walkthrough of the heirs’ property resolution process. Legal services provision is key to the model, so this walkthrough and exploration can also help identify an implementation partner for the initiative.
- Hold a preliminary convening of local partners to share information and explore willingness to collaborate. Depending on context, this can include legal services organizations and law school clinics, housing counseling agencies, community development corporations and social service agencies, local tax assessment offices, local housing agencies and task forces, and/or elected officials. Share experiences and frustrations, and start to identify solutions—including the path for collaboration represented in this playbook!
RESOURCES
Sample Heirs’ Property Forum Invitation (LISC Jacksonville)
Sample Heirs’ Property Forum Agenda (LISC Jacksonville)
ENGAGEMENT TIP
Host information sessions sharing heirs’ property data and invite residents to co-design potential solutions from their vantage point.
RESOURCES
Tolemi Tolemi is a parcel-level data tool used by many LISC municipal and local government partners to identify properties at risk of heirs’ title issues or tax delinquency.
A Methodological Approach to Estimate Residential Heirs’ Property in the United States
2
Identify Priority Neighborhoods
- Collaborate with public officials, tax assessors, or researchers to understand and access available public data on likely heirs’ properties and on property conditions and title status. This exercise can both help identify priority neighborhoods and engage the public sector in solutions.
- Map property vulnerability using data on tax delinquency, code violations, ownership history, and other key indicators. Predictive modeling technology at the parcel level can help proactively identify likely heirs’ property cases. So can local knowledge—helping to identify neighborhoods where there are older adults; code enforcement and foreclosure challenges; investor activity, speculation, and gentrification; and a lack of access to estate or succession planning and legal services.
- Clearly define the outreach geography and eligibility criteria, and pilot any mapping or data tools deployed in the target area. Incorporate feedback from legal partners and community-serving organizations
PRACTITIONER TIP: Access to lists of vulnerable heirs’ properties can streamline the outreach process and motivate local funders to support efficient outreach activities.
- Gather information about the experiences of heirs in this geography. What issues or risks are causing heirs to seek help? What barriers do heirs face? What goals are heirs expressing? What messages resonate with them, and which situations best promote taking action?
3
Generate Referral Pathways Among Service Partners
- Form and organize a cross-sector working group with legal, nonprofit, and public sector stakeholders to build trust and public awareness.
- Secure core partnerships with legal service providers and community groups, and ensure that legal staff, fellows, students, and community volunteers are trained in issues and services specific to heirs’ property.
- Consider partnership with organizations and agencies that already serve homeowners (e.g., housing counseling and foreclosure prevention agencies, home repair programs, disaster recovery programs, utility assistance) to help further identify residents experiencing title issues.
PRACTITIONER TIP: Agencies responsible for owner-occupied rehab or home repair may have lists of applicants denied due to heirs’ property issues.
- Establish and define lanes for case intake and triage processes, legal navigation, and estate planning. Determine the balance between prevention through estate or succession planning, and resolving cases in probate.
PRACTITIONER TIP: Prevention through estate or succession planning can be a cost-effective way of introducing heirs property services to a community.
- Understand how legal services organizations define clients and cases—for example, they may have income eligibility limits, steps for identifying clients, and procedures to run conflict checks.
PRACTITIONER TIP: See how additional resources may allow legal services groups to go beyond traditional income or other case restrictions.
- Operationalize a centralized case management system to understand referral pathways and track referral flows, retention, roadblocks, and case tracking.
RESOURCES
LISC Heirs' Property Workflow (LISC Jacksonville)
Heirs Property Practitioner Network (HPPN) HPPN connects legal aid providers, housing counselors, policymakers, and community-based organizations working to resolve heirs’ property issues. The Network offers training, peer exchange, and curated research to support equitable homeownership and preservation.
Sample Grant Agreement to Legal Aid Organization & Community Outreach Partner These sample grant agreements outline how local LISC offices can formalize partnerships with legal service providers and outreach organizations to expand heirs’ property resolution and estate planning services in their communities.
RESOURCES
Sample Heirs’ Property Legal Services Postcard (LISC Jacksonville)
Sample Heirs’ Property Legal Services Flyer (LISC Jacksonville)
Philadelphia’s Tangled Title Fund
Howard University School of Law Estate Planning & Heirs’ Property Clinic
Homeowners’ Workshop, Estate Planning (LISC Jacksonville)
4
Identify Priority Neighborhoods
- Develop the materials that will be used to educate people about heirs’ property.
FRAMING TIP: To honor legacies, emphasize storytelling and family histories, and share stories that reflect dignity, resilience, and heritage.
- For community-level practitioners who will be sourcing referrals for estate planning and legal services: Share FAQs, conversation prompts to use during regular service delivery, and messaging templates on unclear title, available resources to assist heirs’ property households, and how to connect households to help.
FRAMING TIP: Encourage partners to follow the communication principle “BLUF”— bottom line up front—to create speed and clarity.
- For residents: Develop culturally relevant materials, FAQs and factsheets, and outreach kits, and make tools available to mobile-friendly interfaces for easily accessible community use.
5
Deploy Implementation Partners
- Launch legal services delivery: Ensure that partnering attorneys and paralegals are trained, community-engaged, and have an understanding of or connections to (presence within) the specific communities being served.
- Launch community engagement through trusted messengers: Train “community ambassadors” to lead events and assist with navigation. Utilize committed neighborhood voices, HUD-certified housing counselors, community organizations, senior centers, churches and faith-based groups and leaders, and universities.
PRACTITIONER TIP: Center trusted community voices from day one and build confidence through local leaders, faith groups, and the creative community.
- Launch supportive services: Integrate heirs’ property services and connect clients to wraparound resources such as property tax relief, home repair, foreclosure prevention, and financial counseling.
FIELD EXAMPLE
“My Home, My Deed”
Ms. Jones had lived in her friend’s home since 2015. Though the home was left to her in a will, probate was never completed. Using a local data tool, a partner identified the property and sent Ms. Jones a mailer. With legal aid’s help, she completed probate, received the deed in her name, and was able to access home repair programs and secure a homestead exemption to reduce her property tax bill. A transfer-on-death deed was also prepared, ensuring future generations would inherit.
Model Program Snapshots: Case Studies
Access to Titling Assistance
John W. inherited his home from his deceased wife, but lacked a clear title. A volunteer attorney worked with probate court to transfer ownership into his name. With this support, he secured the title and became eligible for home repair programs.
Family Mediation
Sarah B. and four siblings inherited their mother’s home. With legal aid facilitation, Sarah probated the estate and her siblings transferred their interests to her, allowing her to secure funding for home improvements.
Legal Support + Home Repair
Brenda couldn’t access a home repair grant program without title. After completing probate with legal support, she received the deed, accessed repair resources, and had a transfer-on-death deed prepared to avoid future heirs’ property.
Preventing Tax Foreclosure
Because the property wasn’t in his name, the city didn’t register Richard’s homestead exemption. After intervention by the legal team, the city gave credit for rightful exemptions and helped negotiate a payment plan.
SUGGESTED SAMPLE METRICS FOR LOCAL TEAMS
- Titles cleared/quiet title actions completed
- Estate planning tools executed (wills, TOD deeds)
- Households/properties engaged/referred
- Time from intake to legal resolution
- Households connected to repair or tax relief
- Participant feedback (qualitative trust metrics)
- Equity saved in each home
- Number of local policies influenced
6
Track Progress and Build Sustainability
- Develop key performance indicators and conduct impact assessment: cases resolved, deeds and wills executed, titles secured. Monitor progress and household outcomes as well as client experience for program evaluation and continuous improvement (conduct surveys, listening sessions, and stakeholder debriefs).
- Record and report on additional outcomes if possible: foreclosures prevented, tax relief services gained, financial counseling sessions conducted, market value of homes preserved.
- Prepare for funding, policy, and program expansion; engage funders, city and county agencies, and philanthropic partners for scaling.
- Develop an impact snapshot or outcomes dashboard and share with partners. Create an expansion plan.
EXAMPLE: LISC partners have worked with cities to use public funding to support legal services in heirs’ property work.