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.
Arizona counties can take your home to pay a small tax debt, even if it’s unconstitutional.
It can be hard to find much on which Americans across ideologies agree these days, but here’s one: When you owe the government an inch, it shouldn’t take a mile. On that proposition, all nine memb…
WASHINGTON − A 94-year-old woman who lost her home, a student who could barely read after more than a decade of schooling and a couple fighting to build a house in Idaho all have something in common…
The Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously sided with a 94-year-old grandmother who lost her home to foreclosure and then lost the equity she had in the property when the county sold it and kept the pr…
“The taxpayer must render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s, but no more,” wrote Chief Justice John Roberts.
Today the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that such practices qualify as takings requiring the payment of “just compensation” under the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment.
On Thursday, the Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion that provides liberals, conservatives, and libertarians a rare chance to celebrate the same thing. The court’s decision in Tyler v. Hennepin…
‘Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s, but no more,’ writes Chief Justice Roberts
In a unanimous decision, the justices sided with a 94-year-old woman who got nothing when a Minnesota county sold her condominium to recoup unpaid taxes.
Geraldine Tyler never thought she’d end up in front of the U.S. Supreme Court—especially at 94. But she also never imagined the government would seize her Minneapolis home and sell it. Ms. Tyler i…
Pacific Legal Foundation’s Supreme Court victory in Tyler v. Hennepin County created a domino effect across the country. State by state, legislatures are banning home equity theft. Governments have realized that they face significant liability if they ignore the Supreme Court’s ruling that home equity theft is unconstitutional. In the New …
In her concurring opinion in Sackett v. EPA, Justice Elena Kagan—probably the sharpest rhetorician on the bench, especially when she’s disagreeing with her colleagues—complained the Court’s majority was putting “a thumb on the scale for property owners.” Well: Shouldn’t there be a thumb on the scale for property owners in the court of …
Only two weeks removed from Pacific Legal Foundation’s major Supreme Court victory against home equity theft in Tyler v. Hennepin County, there is once again cause for celebration, especially if you live in Nebraska. In Tyler, the Court unanimously ruled that Minnesota’s use of home equity theft—when governments and their private partners satisfy …
In a unanimous decision last week, the Supreme Court ruled home equity theft unconstitutional, securing an individual’s right to just compensation when their property is seized. For years, Pacific Legal Foundation has argued that home equity theft—when governments satisfy property tax debt by taking a person’s home, selling it, and keeping more t …
I’m going to remember today for a long time. This morning—at around 7 a.m. where I am in California—the Supreme Court announced unanimous decisions in two Pacific Legal Foundation cases. Both are stunning victories. In Sackett v. EPA, which PLF senior attorney Damien Schiff argued on the first day of the term …
The first case Christina Martin ever argued in court wasn’t big enough to catch most public interest attorneys’ attention. It was about a ticket on a car. Christina was a young Pacific Legal Foundation attorney in her first real legal job. She’d moved cross-country from Oregon to Florida for “her dream job” at PLF. One …
Geraldine Tyler never thought she’d end up in front of the U.S. Supreme Court—especially at 94. But she also never imagined the government would seize her Minneapolis home and sell it. Ms. Tyler is a victim of what’s often called home-equity theft, but this form of robbery isn’t criminal; in fact, it’s legal in a …
When elderly grandmother Geraldine Tyler failed to pay her property tax debt on her Minneapolis condo, Hennepin County took absolute title to the property, extinguishing all of Ms. Tyler’s interest, including any leftover proceeds after the taxes were paid. While the County was entitled to recover the back taxes, how could it justify greedily takin …
On April 26, Pacific Legal Foundation will make our 19th appearance in front of the Supreme Court, this time to challenge the legality of state laws that empower local governments to steal people’s home equity to satisfy tax debts. The homeowners are left with nothing. When the value of the stolen equity exceeds the amount …
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.
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