Register of Wills should be busy fixing tangled titles, not doling out political patronage | Editorial
Under John Sabatina Sr., an office long considered a patronage mill continues to churn, with at least half of new office hires connected to Democratic Party politics.
Among Philadelphia’s various administrative offices, the Register of Wills has a particularly long history of serving as a vehicle for political patronage, with assorted holders of the role over the years rewarding Democratic Party operatives, friends, and family members with jobs based solely on their connections.
That bleak record is one of the reasons the Editorial Board has long called for the office, along with that of the sheriff, to be abolished as an elected position.
In 2023, this board warned that John Sabatina Sr., if elected as Register of Wills, would likely keep the patronage mill humming. Boy, has he ever.
An Inquirer analysis found that among the dozens of people Sabatina has brought on board, there are three ward leaders, 10 committeepeople, two wives of committeepeople, and other relatives of elected officials. As reported by The Inquirer’s Ryan W. Briggs and William Bender, that means at least half of new office hires have ties to party politics.
At the same time, 10 former employees have sued the city claiming they were unlawfully fired. Whatever the result of those lawsuits, they are likely to add to the nearly $400,000 in taxpayer money already paid out to four former staffers who alleged similar treatment under Sabatina’s predecessor, Tracey Gordon.
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The Register of Wills, which oversees marriage licenses, estate taxes, and other matters in addition to wills, provides important services to the people of Philadelphia, and officials should be focused on getting things done right, not on serving a connected class.
Most of the time, Philadelphians interact with Sabatina’s office after the death of a loved one, a time when they must deal not only with their grief but also with a series of complicated bureaucratic processes. Many families are unprepared for the legal questions that accompany death, particularly in instances where there is no will designating an heir.
When it comes to property records in the city, situations without a specific inheritor can lead to what is informally known as a “tangled title” — a legal limbo where ownership is unclear in the event of a death.
“Untangling” a title can cost thousands of dollars. In a city with higher-than-usual rates of low-income home ownership, this process can be particularly onerous. Roughly 10,000 homes in Philadelphia have a tangled title, according to the Pew Research Center.
Without clear ownership, families are unable to access either traditional financing from a bank, like a home equity line of credit, or city programs reserved for low-income homeowners like Basic Systems Repair, the Senior Tax Freeze, the Homestead Exemption, and the Low-Income Owner Occupant Program.
This can make home maintenance prohibitively expensive and can lead to the property’s slow deterioration.
» READ MORE: The next register of wills should keep up the good work in fixing ‘tangled titles’ | Editorial
A house with a tangled title might end up abandoned and blighted, contributing to a long-standing problem in many Philadelphia neighborhoods.
According to research from University of Pennsylvania physician Eugenia South, keeping homes in good condition can do more than ensure access to shelter. Blocks where families were able to access maintenance funds through the city’s Basic Systems Repair program, for example, saw a reduction in violence of 21.9%.
A tangled title can also impact generational wealth. It is not uncommon that in exchange for clearing a title, a developer may get a steep discount on a property’s purchase price. That can mean tens of thousands of dollars taken off the board for families who can least afford it.
Gordon, who lost a primary battle with Sabatina and left office in 2023 after one term, was far from perfect as Register of Wills — she faced her own claims of political retribution and allowed her daughter to sell Eagles merchandise out of a City Hall conference room — but she made fixing tangled titles a focal point of her tenure.
Sabatina pledged to pick up the baton and continue working on the issue during his election campaign. But then again, he also campaigned on restoring public trust. If recent events are any indication, he has so far failed to do either.