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Heirs’ Property – Taking the First Step

Heirs’ property is land that has been passed down from the original deed holder to future generations without benefit of a formal process (will or probate).  Even though the family members know the land is theirs, their claim has not been established by the county, which leaves the family without a title.  This land is then restricted from development and vulnerable to exploitation, no matter who lives there or who pays the taxes.

According to the Center for Heirs’ Property Preservation (CHPP), “Heirs’ property owners do not own a piece of the family land.  The own a ‘percentage’ of the whole property.  That percentage is determined by where each heir falls in the family tree.  The family tree is the first thing that the family has to create in order to begin the work of resolving heirs’ property.”

Gathering family information is the first step in resolving heirs’ property. The Heritage Library volunteers are using their experience in researching family histories to find and document family members as we work to assist local families experiencing heirs’ property issues. This is a first step in a long process but it is an essential step.

The Library established a partnership with the Town of Hilton Head Island, the Gullah Geechee Land and Cultural Preservation Project, USCB and Lowcountry Gullah Foundation to make this project possible. We are now looking at expanding the project so that assistance can be made available to clients throughout Beaufort County. Project expansion will be based on securing a referring agency and operational funding. The end goal for us is to produce a family tree that documents all the information we can find that our clients can take forward to begin the legal side of the process and providing this service at no cost to the client.

If you have questions about this project please contact the Library at 843.686.6560 or info@heritagelib.org

For additional information:

https://lowcountrygullahfoundation.org/

https://farmlandaccess.org/heirs-property/

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