Have you ever miscalculated a bill? Typically, a late fee or a strongly worded warning follows. But in some states, the government will seize your property, sell it, and leave you with nothing.
In 2023, PLF brought home equity theft to the Supreme Court in Tyler v. Hennepin County and the Supreme Court unanimously declared the practice unconstitutional. Now, PLF is working with state legislators across the country to reform local laws.
Property taxes must be paid, and it’s legal for governments to take property to pay an outstanding debt. But the government shouldn’t keep any more money beyond what’s owed. The rest is your property: home equity that you’ve worked hard to build.
Is Home Equity Theft happening to you? Submit a case.
In courts and legislatures, Pacific Legal Foundation fights to protect your nest egg and prevent governments from stealing homeowners’ equity.
In January 2023, the Supreme Court announced it would review the case of Geraldine Tyler, an elderly widow who is suing Hennepin County, Minnesota for the unconstitutional theft of her home equity. When Geraldine fell behind on the property taxes for her one-bedroom condo, the government seized the home, sold it, and kept every penny—even though it was more than double what Geraldine owed. “When the government takes more than it is owed in taxes, that’s home equity theft,” Pacific Legal Foundation senior attorney Christina Martin, who represents Geraldine, said. On May 25, 2023, the Supreme Court announced a unanimous decision in favor of Geraldine, ruling that home equity theft violates the Takings Clase of the Fifth Amendment. The Court explained that property rights are fundamental and cannot be erased by a state statute that redefines them out of existence. “The taxpayer must render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s,” Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in the decision, “but no more.” Read more about Tyler v. Hennepin County.
The Constitution is ill-served by any rule that lets the government off the hook for reimbursing the full value of the property they’ve taken.
Yesterday Governor Tina Kotek signed HB 2089 to protect home equity from government theft in the collection of property tax debt.
A local government gave ownership of Kevin Fair’s Nebraska house—and all of its value—to a private investor, in a practice known as home equity theft.
A landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision last year centered on a then-94-year-old Minneapolis woman named Geraldine Tyler, who’d lost the condominium where she once lived after failing to pay property…
In a cage match between the judicially enforceable constitutional right to be justly compensated when one’s property is taken, and a state’s claim to sovereign immunity, which doctrine prevails?
For years, Kevin Fair has been staring down a coarse reality: poised to have his home seized, along with all of its equity, because he accrued a modest debt on his property taxes. The Nebraska Supreme…
AARP applauds Massachusetts lawmakers for passing and Gov. Maura Healy for enacting a law that makes a practice known as home equity theft illegal in the Bay State.
Yesterday, the Supreme Court delivered its decision in Pung v. Isabella County, ruling against the Pung family. In February, the Pungs asked the Court to affirm that when the government takes and sell…
The House Oversight Committee recently announced an investigation into the District of Columbia’s use of home equity theft, highlighting a major threat to property rights. Home equity theft is a sha…
In a time when homelessness and housing costs are at an all-time high, reforms that protect against increased expenses and barriers to providing homes are both prudent and principled.
Last week, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in PLF’s case Pung v. Isabella County. At its core, the case is about home equity theft and the Fifth Amendment’s promise of just compensation. Th…
On February 25, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in Pung v. Isabella County, the latest legal challenge to the practice of home equity theft to reach the high court. Pacific Legal Found…
On Wednesday, PLF heads back to the Supreme Court to continue the fight against home equity theft and protect property owners’ right to just compensation. Pung v. Isabella County began with a disput…
In the autumn of 2025, the Supreme Court granted certiorari in the first case since the 1980s to address the amount of “just compensation” the government is required by the Constitution to provide…
Mike Pung’s life has been shaped by two driving forces: devotion to family and a refusal to back down from bullies. For over 15 years, those guiding principles have carried him through a drawn-out l…
St. Louis City officials are as fixated on eminent domain as Ralphie was on a Red Ryder Daisy Bolt-Action Carbine Air Rifle.
Help us end the practice of home equity theft for good. Your support helps us bring additional legal challenges and legislative solutions to protect the home equity of hardworking Americans.
