Our Heirs' Property Initiatives

Heirs' property is increasingly understood as a major barrier to generational wealth-building in vulnerable communities. That's why FHLBank Indianapolis is proud to partner with organizations across our district to promote locally driven initiatives that seek to resolve and prevent heirs' property issues.

Turning Legacy into Opportunity

FHLBank Indianapolis partnered with Black Onyx Management to research heirs' property issues in Marion and Allen Counties, Indiana. Published in September 2024, the resulting report found more than 1,800 likely heirs' properties collectively valued at more than $258 million between the two counties. An additional 4,706 at-risk properties with a combined estimated value of $826 million were also identified.

The report accompanies a series of policy recommendations designed to resolve existing heirs' property issues and promote community education and bolster the resources available to households in an effort to reduce or prevent future issues.

Read the full report, "Turning Legacy into Opportunity: Overcoming Inherited Property Obstacles in Marion County and Allen County, Ind.," here.

Detroit Heirs’ Property Program: A Community-Driven Approach

In January 2025, the Bank and LISC Detroit announced a new program designed to help resolve and prevent ongoing heirs' property issues in the city of Detroit. Administered by LISC Detroit, the Detroit Heirs’ Property program will take a holistic approach to resolving current heirs’ property issues while working to mitigate and prevent future challenges facing Detroit residents. The program is guided by and builds upon research published by Detroit Future City on the extent of heirs' property challenges in Detroit.

The program will focus on three core areas: coalition building, providing outreach and legal services on a neighborhood level, and long-term planning for citywide education and engagement. Coalition-building efforts will focus on system and policy change as well as engaging community development corporations (CDCs) who are supporting residents with heirs’ property issues. LISC Detroit will also work directly with CDCs in target neighborhoods to saturate the community with awareness and deliver connections to legal services.

Alongside the program, the Bank is also launching a small advisory committee of local financial institutions to understand the heirs' property-related challenges facing Detroiters and to think creatively on how to support the preservation of homeownership.

Read our news release here.