There’s a reason Black wealth is projected to hit near-zero for too many families. Realtor leader Diahnna Curtis (President, Akron Realtist) breaks down how our homes are lost to probate, Medicaid estate recovery, and bad planning—and exactly how to protect them.

What you’ll learn

Why approvals ≠ closings: the hidden drop-off for minority buyers

The wealth math of homeownership (leverage, stability, legacy)

Probate vs. Trusts vs. Survivorship deeds — which keeps the house in the family

How Medicaid’s 5-year lookback can claw back the home—and what to do before crisis

Practical help: grants for inspection/appraisal, scholarships into real estate careers, and vetted pros

Ever wonder why so many approved buyers still lose their homes days before closing? We unpack that frustrating cliff edge and connect it to a bigger mission: building minority wealth through sustainable homeownership, smarter financing, and estate planning that actually protects families. Our guest, Diahnna Curtis—president of the Akron Realtist Association and a seasoned realtor—brings the blend of creativity, grit, and practical know‑how that turns raw circumstances into stable futures.

We start with the personal: how divorce and tight budgets can spark the creativity to DIY, save, and learn the real estate game from the studs. From there, we go wide—examining the minority homeownership gap, why women are carrying more approvals than men, and what the SHIBA report reveals about a troubling wealth forecast. Diahnna explains the late‑stage hurdles that derail closings, including appraisal gaps, thin reserves for surprise costs, and underwriting shifts that punish buyers with limited credit histories. Together, we propose tangible fixes: scholarships to bring more minorities into real estate careers, funds that cover inspections and appraisals, and a community network of lenders, appraisers, and inspectors committed to fair outcomes.

Then we double down on wealth preservation. Too many elders lose homes to Medicaid’s five‑year lookback or see properties trapped in probate for a year while taxes and repairs pile up. We walk through practical tools—living trusts, transfer on death and survivorship deeds—and the hard but necessary family conversations that assign responsibilities early and keep property in the bloodline. Diahnna shares the emotional reality of selling a parent’s home and how to balance memories with stewardship, so care decisions and financial decisions serve both dignity and long‑term stability.

If you care about generational wealth, neighborhood health, and giving kids a foundation stronger than circumstance, this conversation is your field guide. Subscribe, share with someone planning to buy or protect a family home, and leave a review with your biggest question about closing the deal or setting up a trust—we’ll tackle it in a future episode.

Support the show

Shop: www.bfempowerment.com/shop

Follow: @powerfullybroken | @queenblparker | bfempowerment.com/pbp
Book: A Powerful Divorce
Therapy: BF Empowerment Center 526 South Main Street Akron, Ohio 44311

Watch Powerfully Broken Podcast airing on Fridays at 9am.

She was the protector everyone called when things got ugly. Today, Kitten (Charlesetta Byers-Richardson) is the founder & CEO of Nalijaron Wines—and she’s sharing how she transformed street survival into a legitimate, legacy-building business.

What you’ll learn

• Why some girls “choose the life” (trauma, “protection,” fast cash) and how to exit
• Street loyalty vs. self-loyalty: the moment everything changed
• Turning hustle into a business: discipline, product, pricing, and shipping
• Boundaries, safety, and protecting your kids without losing yourself
• Legacy lens: from ‘mama pimp’ to mama entrepreneur

What happens when the fiercest protector in the room decides to protect herself too? We sit down with Kitten—founder and CEO of Nalijaron Wines—for a raw, unflinching conversation about survival, loyalty, and what it takes to turn pain into purpose without losing your edge. She opens up about a childhood shaped by absence and street codes, the years she became the one people called when things got dangerous, and the moment a devastating loss forced her to choose a different legacy.

We go deep on the gray spaces people rarely admit out loud: harm reduction inside “the life,” why fast money can be addictive even when it’s killing you, and how protection built on fear can slowly become protection built on structure, options, and community. Kitten shares how she tried to make the streets safer—clean rooms, food, medical care—while wrestling with the moral cost and the heartbreak of losing someone she tried to help. Her honesty about caring for everyone else while ignoring her own health will hit home for anyone who’s been the family backbone for too long.

The turn toward entrepreneurship is both practical and poetic. With Nalijaron Wines—31 flavors with a clean, no-hangover finish—Kitten channels grit into craft and turns survival skills into business skills. We talk about product quality, customer trust, and a brand rooted in healing, dignity, and second chances. If you’re navigating trauma, exploring life after the streets, or building a business that reflects who you’re becoming, this story offers a grounded blueprint for change.

Subscribe for more conversations that transform hard truths into healthy futures, and share this episode with someone who needs proof that survival can ferment into something beautiful. If you enjoyed the show, leave a review and tell us the moment that moved you most.

• Nalijaron Wines, 2535 Romig Rd, Akron, OH 44320 | (330) 459-9090 | Ships (where legal)
• Follow: @powerfullybroken | @queenblparker | bfempowerment.com/pbp

• Book: A Powerful Divorce

Therapy: BF Empowerment Center 526 South Main Street Akron, Ohio 44311

Watch Powerfully Broken Podcast airing on Fridays at 9am.

Support the show

Keys can feel heavier when life is heavy. We sit down with Diahnna Curtis—realtor, community leader, and caregiver—to trace how a home becomes more than an address when you’re navigating grief, surgery, and the hard math of a volatile market. What starts as a story about buying and selling turns into a blueprint for building stability: saving through feast-or-famine seasons, trusting your gut after an inspection, and designing for a future self that deserves ease, access, and dignity.

Diahnna brings the honesty most sales conversations skip. She breaks down why door hangers and endless open houses often look busy but underperform, and how to replace them with strategies that actually convert. We unpack the punch list that matters—decluttering, targeted fixes, smart staging—and the cold truth about ROI: over-improving for your neighborhood won’t generate fantasy offers. You’ll hear how to decide between “as-is” pricing and selective upgrades, how to read your market with comps, and why an agent who can read your face may save you from decades of buyer’s remorse.

Underneath the tactics is the heart: being a primary caregiver while running a business, reordering a day when a parent with memory loss needs you longer than planned, and still showing up for clients without letting your own life fall apart. We talk about the quiet heroism of support systems—lenders, friends, and colleagues who catch the baton when your hands shake—and the deeper meaning of a “forever home” for someone who moved every year as a child. Accessibility, first-floor living, and spaces that evolve with you turn a house into a partner for the life you’re actually living.

If you’re buying, selling, caregiving, or just craving a space that holds you together, this conversation gives you both the playbook and the permission to choose well. Subscribe, share with a friend who needs a lifeline, and leave a review telling us the one feature your forever home must have.

Resources & Safety

If you’re in danger, call 911 (U.S.).
Domestic Violence Hotline (U.S.): 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or chat: thehotline.org
Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (U.S.): Call/Text 988 (24/7)
About the show
Powerfully Broken helps you overcome unhealthy relationships that harm mental health. New episodes Tuesday and Fridays at 9 AM ET and Sunday at 8am ET

• Book: A Powerful Divorce — reclaim peace & purpose
• BF Empowerment Center — counseling, coaching, MPAC youth program
• Guest: Google “Diahnna Curtis Akron Realtor” or call 330-715-5650
• Follow: @powerfullybroken | @queenblparker | bfempowerment.com/pbp

Support the show

Shop: www.bfempowerment.com

Follow: @powerfullybroken | @queenblparker | bfempowerment.com/pbp
Book: A Powerful Divorce
Therapy: BF Empowerment Center 526 South Main Street Akron, Ohio 44311

Watch Powerfully Broken Podcast airing on Fridays at 9am.