Sis Shaneka’s Land to Legacy movement is helping Black families turn affordable land ownership into a pathway toward generational wealth.
Nationwide — For Black families, land has always meant more than property. It has meant freedom, stability, power, security, and something tangible to pass down. But over the last century, Black land ownership has declined dramatically. The Federation of Southern Cooperatives reports that Black farmland ownership peaked at roughly 16 to 19 million acres in 1910 and has fallen to less than 3 million acres today. The organization also estimates that more than 60% of Black-owned land is heirs’ property, leaving many families vulnerable to losing land that was meant to remain in the family.
The ownership gap is still visible today. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Black homeownership rate was 44.0% in the first quarter of 2026, compared with 75.0% for non-Hispanic White households. That is the story Sis Shaneka is trying to help change. Through her free Land to Legacy Masterclass, Sis Shaneka has taught more than 10,000 students at no cost, breaking down land ownership, funding, development, and legacy-building in a way everyday people can understand and use. The movement was created to remove the intimidation around real estate and give more families access to the knowledge they need to move from simply wanting ownership to actually building a plan for it.
Through her Deeds Under Trees™ Challenge, Sis has already helped more than 1,000 Black people go through the challenge and actually acquire land, with some purchasing parcels for less than $1,000. Her message is simple: You do not have to be wealthy to start building wealth through land. You may not have come from a wealthy family, but a wealthy family can come through you.
Sis Shaneka, a real estate developer and owner of multiple mobile home parks, has built a large online community of over 600,000 followers, including a private FB community with over 41,000 members, around teaching everyday people how to enter real estate without feeling shut out by high prices, lack of experience, or limited access to traditional investing knowledge. Now she is bringing back the 4th Annual Deeds Under Trees™ Challenge, taking place virtually via Zoom on November 9–13, 2026. And taking 200 more people to a live auction to buy land on November 20th, 2026.
During the five-day virtual experience, participants learn how to find affordable land, evaluate property before buying or making expensive mistakes, proper business structure, access to funding options, how to protect property through trusts to avoid losing it to heirs property, and strategies to turn your land into $1,000-$2500/mo cashflow!
But Sis says the real goal is not simply education. It is ownership.
Platinum participants will have the opportunity to continue into a live land auction on November 20, where they can research parcels, bid on property, and potentially walk away owning land, with available parcels starting around $500. “I don’t want people just taking another class and filling up another notebook,” says Sis. “I want them to walk away saying, ‘I own land.’” That philosophy is also behind the name Deeds Under Trees™.
Instead of only spending money on gifts that lose value after Christmas, Sis is encouraging families to consider giving something different this holiday season: Land.
“Imagine putting a deed under the Christmas tree,” she says. “Imagine telling your children, ‘This belongs to our family.’ That piece of land can become a home, an investment, income, or something they pass down to their children. That’s what legacy looks like to me.” Through Land to Legacy, she teaches that buying the land is only the first step. The larger mission is helping families understand how to research it, acquire it, protect it, develop it, & monetize it. Her goal this Christmas is simple: Help more Black families own something & put a Deed Under The Tree.
The 4th Annual Deeds Under Trees™ Challenge takes place November 9–13, 2026. The Live Auction – November 20th, 2026. (Platinum Ticket Holders Only). To learn more and take the challenge, visit DeedsUnderTrees.com
To learn more about the FREE Land to Legacy Master Class, visit LandToLegacy.com/masterclass
Follow Sis Shaneka on social media:
Instagram – @SisShaneka
Facebook – @ShanekaLene
YouTube: @SisShaneka
For press inquiries, contact (336) 530-5524 or info@shanekalene.com