Ginger Plummer Mair is specific in her housing requirements: a home located in a well laid-out community, with a sidewalk on each side of the street and a grocery store nearby.
“It has to be a walkable community and have all those things,” said herbalist Plummer Mair. “All of that can create for me a sense of wealth in your mind, body and spirit. Homeownership is more than just the four walls around your body.”
The Laurel homeowner and founder of Ginger’s Roots, a tea and herbal apothecary located in the Laurel Shopping Center, said choosing a home should not just be about the financial value nor the number of bedrooms a property has. Alternatively, choosing a property should be an investment for one’s mental and physical health, in addition to generational wealth.
“As an herbalist, I see housing not only as shelter but a space for healing, self sufficiency and legacy,” said Plummer Mair.
The world celebrates Earth Day this month, a global observance encouraging humankind to take care of the earth so that it may last for the generations after them. Plummer Mair’s philosophy is that taking care of the environment–particularly the land one owns–is an act that benefits not only one’s pockets, but intergenerational mental and physical health.
“Homeownership is more than just the four walls around your body,” said Plummer Mair. “If we think about 2020 and the pandemic where we were isolated, stuck in the house and didn’t have access to conventional, modern drugs, many people turned to holistic medicine, and just what was grown in our neighborhoods as an option for therapeutic healing. When families have access to land, they can look at how to grow on their land, and then when it’s time to pass down their homes, they are also passing down land, the resources around it, natural remedies, and the power to thrive.”
She shared her wellness perspective in Prince George’s County, Maryland, this week during the National Association of Real Estate Brokers’ (NAREB) Black Wealth Tour, a 100-city day-long seminar on how to close the racial homeownership gap, which took place throughout the U.S.
Plummer Mair spoke at one of five DMV-area convenings that featured additional discussions led by NAREB leaders and local experts on topics including mortgage lending, financial planning and empowerment, estate planning, wealth preservation and homeownership accountability.
“People may hear ‘wealth’ and they may only think one thing,” said Charrise Callender-Scott, vice president and treasurer of NAREB’s Prince George’s County affiliate. “Wealth is also health. Wealth is also relationships and quality of life–those things that help you cultivate a strong financial backing because you have certain supports. You have certain attributes in your life that create stress which makes it difficult to accumulate wealth because you don’t have time to devote to your health and being in the moment.”
Having a Financial Back-Up Plan
Callender-Scott helped coordinate the Prince George’s County Black Wealth Tour to offer insight to residents interested in owning a home, those interested in refinancing, and learning what options are available to those making a transition following a layoff, in addition to those who are expecting career shifts during the current federal shakeup.
Speakers like Plummer Mair offered their experiences and insight to help people navigate challenging financial times.
Plummer Mair’s father told her at a young age to always have three streams of income to protect herself from unexpected career changes and to ensure that she had options to fall back on.
“He said, ‘if you have other jobs, it’ll make you more effective at your full-time job and less averse to risk, ’” she recalled. “Meaning you don’t have to work scared in fear of losing your job. I was trying to prepare myself to have multiple properties as multiple sources of income, but at the time, it wasn’t the best time.”
Now, her three streams of income include her full-time job as a communications professional, investing in the stock market and operating Ginger’s Roots where she provides healing herbs, fruits, and oils in addition to leading workshops and consultations for those seeking a healthier lifestyle.
“If we’re not eating the right foods, if we’re living a very sedentary lifestyle because we’re not going outside, and we’re not touching grass and getting electrons through our feet, our health is at risk,” she told The Informer.
In addition to helping people access health nourishment and encouraging active lifestyles, Plummer Mair also said the location of someone’s home can also make a difference in health.
“Where you live and even what materials your house is built with has a huge factor in your health,” Plummer Mair explained. “Listening to water and all of those conditions can have an impact on cellular structure and that can be what you pass down.”
Depending on the location, homeowners can care for themselves and promote health among loved ones.
“Even if you just have a stitch of land, you can learn how to make use of that and grow your own vegetables,” added Plummer Mair. “Not only is that healthier for you, it reduces your grocery and healthcare costs. Those are considerations we should make when purchasing a home.”