This report applies the framework of the national heirs’ property social return on investment analysis to three New Jersey counties: Essex, Camden, and Mercer. Using prospective Social Return on Investment (SROI) estimates, we assess the potential benefits of resolving heirs’ property cases in these counties.
This analysis estimates that every dollar invested in heirs’ property interventions could yield between $2 and $48 per $1 invested in societal benefits. For individual families, the potential financial benefits range from $16,500 to $383,000 on average, depending on the family’s financial goals and the outcomes of its case.
The prospective SROI analysis for Camden, Essex, and Mercer counties demonstrates consistently positive returns across all outcome categories, with some notable variation in magnitude. The greatest value is generated through avoided foreclosure and loss of asset, with SROI estimates ranging from $39 in Camden to $48 in Mercer, underscoring the critical role of asset preservation in wealth protection.
Taken together, the results suggest that differences across counties likely reflect underlying variation in local housing market conditions, foreclosure risk, and household financial dynamics across the three counties (See the Appendix for an example of local housing market parameters).
