Pre-order now · Delivered October 26, 2026

Before & Afterthe Funeral

How Assisted Living, Estate Sales, and Inherited
Homes Built a Family Office

Get the Ebook $35 →

✦ Ebook · Delivered Monday, October 26 · Instant delivery after launch day

Before & After the Funeral by Stacey & Ja'el Thomas

If you are the one holding the keys, this was written for you.

You do not need to know anything about real estate. Most of the families in this book didn’t either.

✦
You just inherited a house
The mortgage is still running. The lawn is still growing. The neighbors are calling. Nobody handed you a playbook. This is that playbook.
✦
You are the one everybody calls
The sibling who got put in charge. Decisions to make, relatives with opinions, and deadlines nobody explained to you.
✦
Nothing has happened yet
Your parents are still here, and you would rather handle this now than in the worst week of your life. Start here.

Agents, investors, operators, and probate attorneys: the system itself is in Parts III and IV.

Your family’s story, told in five acts.

This is not a textbook. It’s the true story of how a mother and daughter turned families’ hardest moments into a family office, and the playbook they built along the way.

I
What a House Can Become
Four sets of stair lifts and an elevator. We walked through that house seeing something nobody else at the showing could see. We start at the end of the story, so you know where this is going.
II
The Calls Nobody Prepares You For
The families who inherited a house and had no idea what came next. The sister who got put in charge. The one who waited too long. What it actually cost them.
III
Ten Ways Out
Everything you can actually do with an inherited property. Most families know about two of them, and pick the wrong one.
IV
When the House Becomes the Business
The quiet reason inherited homes make some of the best assisted living facilities in America, and what that could mean for yours.
V
What One House Can Turn Into
How a single inherited property became a family office, and the loop that keeps feeding it.

If You Have Been Here

“Nobody tells you about the grief.
Not just losing somebody, but letting go of things.”

From the Book

A mother and a daughter,
building a family office out loud.

Stacey Thomas with Before & After the Funeral
Stacey Thomas
Co-Founder · Wanzer Family Office

Thirty-two years of raising, curating, and holding a family together. Now the operator who walks families through their hardest hours and out the other side with a plan.

“Real estate is more than a house structure. It’s building families and communities.”

Ja’el Thomas
Co-Founder · Wanzer Family Office

Wealth strategist, DMV realtor, and operator. Runs the due diligence, structures the capital, and teaches the frameworks the family office is built on.

“Never quit before your abundance.”

Ja’el Thomas with Before & After the Funeral

They said it better than we can.

“My sale was not your usual sale.”

She was patient, thorough and consistent. She kept me upbeat and confident. She was there with me from the beginning to closing. I couldn’t have had a better agent.

Vanessa Allen · Arlington, VA

“Navigating the sale of our family’s home was an incredibly daunting process.”

This was my sister’s and my first time going through the real estate process from start to finish. She kept close, consistent contact with us, made sure we understood each step, and helped us meet every deadline. She even showed up at closing just so there would be a friendly face. We couldn’t have done it without her.

Kenyatta Malloy · Family Home Sale

Right now the ebook comes with all four.
That ends at launch week.

The book tells you what we did. These four companions help you do it.
Bundled with the ebook through Sunday, November 1, then they go back to being sold on their own.

01
The First 30 Days Checklist

What to do, in order, the month after you inherit a property. Who to call, what to secure, what can wait, and the two deadlines most families miss.

02
The Estate Sale Guide

Our complete walkthrough for selling an inherited or estate property without the stress. Probate, prep, and three paths to closing.

03
Ten Ways to Monetize an Inherited Property

The one-page worksheet from Part III. Every option side by side, so you can see what the house is actually worth to your family before anyone makes a decision.

04
The Live Launch Call

Sixty minutes with Stacey and Ja’el on launch day. Bring your situation. Readers only, not recorded for the public.

The four launch bundle companions: The First 30 Days Checklist, The Estate Sale Guide, Ten Ways to Monetize an Inherited Property, and The Live Launch Call

All four come with the ebook. Thirty-five dollars, nothing else to buy.

Get the Bundle $35 →

Bundle closes Sunday, November 1. The ebook stays $35. The companions do not stay free.

Order now and three things happen.

  • ✦ Founder pricing, locked at $35 before it goes up.
  • ✦ Your copy on launch day, in your inbox Monday, October 26.
  • ✦ A live launch call with Stacey and Ja’el, 60 minutes, buyers only.
Get the Ebook $35 →

✦ Ebook · Delivered Monday, October 26 · Hardcover returns December 1

Inherited a property or thinking about selling? Get a free confidential valuation →Ja’el Thomas, REALTOR® · Pearson Smith Realty

Never quit before your abundance.