Every family has a moment when life changes and there is no clear roadmap for what comes next.

For our family, that moment came decades ago, in the summer of 1975. When our grandfather passed away unexpectedly at age 37, our grandmother, Sandy, was left to raise three young children on her own, including our mom, Karen, who was just 10 years old at the time. Like many people of her generation, Sandy had never been taught how to manage the financial and practical responsibilities that suddenly landed on her shoulders. There was no guide, no playbook, and no one helping her navigate what came next.  Over the years, we realized her story wasn't unique.

 

We saw friends, neighbors, clients, trustees, and adult children face the same challenges. A parent passes away. A trust becomes active. A family home suddenly becomes the responsibility of a trustee or adult child. Important decisions about property, personal belongings, finances, and next steps need to be made. Families are often left trying to navigate unfamiliar territory during one of the most difficult seasons of their lives.

 

Together, our experience spans more than 30 years across real estate, estate administration, fiduciary services, and project management. That experience gives us a unique perspective on helping families navigate the practical, financial, and real estate challenges that often accompany major life transitions. Throughout our careers, we continually encountered the same problem from different angles. Everyone was handling a piece of the process, but very few people were helping families connect all the pieces together.

 

 

That's where the idea for Heirloom began.

 

For years, we talked about creating a company that could bridge the gap between attorneys, financial professionals, trustees, real estate advisors, and the families they serve. Too often, everyone involved was doing their part, but no one was responsible for connecting the pieces and moving the process forward.

 

We created Heirloom to provide that structure, coordination, and guidance—a company that could help people not only understand what needed to happen, but actually help them get it done. In 2023, that vision became reality. And together with our mom, Karen Schultz-Tarnopol, we founded Heirloom where we built a company grounded in experience, trust, and the family values that continue to guide our work today.

 

Many of our earliest projects involved complex properties and estates with years of accumulated belongings, deferred decisions, and competing family interests. Those experiences reinforced what we already believed: families need more than individual service providers. They need a trusted partner who can see the big picture, coordinate the many moving parts, and guide them through the process from the initial inventory of personal belongings through the successful sale of the home.

Heirloom helps families, trustees, fiduciaries, and professionals navigate complex transitions with confidence. As a trusted advisor for trusts, estates, and major life transitions, we provide the structure, oversight, and real estate expertise needed to move complex situations forward with clarity. While real estate is often at the center of what we do, our work extends far beyond property. We help coordinate moving parts, solve problems, reduce risk and stress, and create a clear path forward when the road ahead feels uncertain.

 

We believe every family deserves guidance during life's most challenging times. We believe experience matters, communication matters, and trust matters.

Most of all, we believe no one should have to figure it all out alone.

 

-Jake & Jonah Schultz