Foreclosure – Property Tax Liens

• In 13 states, it’s legal for governments to steal your home equity – Pacific Legal Foundation
• Homes for the Taking – Collections – The Washington Post
• Local laws do little to protect homeowners – The Washington Post
• Small unpaid bills put residents at risk – Baltimore Sun
• Sun Sentinel Investigation: Tax lien sharks use shell companies to squeeze out locals – South Florida Sun Sentinel
• Tax Lien Sales Put Low-Income, Seniors, and the Disabled at Risk of Foreclosure – American Bar Association
• The elderly at risk – The Washington Post
• The other foreclosure crisis: Losing a home over $400 in back taxes – CNN
• The Scandal of the Predatory City – The New York Times
• What Is a Property Lien? This Debt Could Trip Up Your Home Sale – realtor.com

• 1994 Tax Billing Error Forces Woman Into 5-Year Legal Battle To Save Her House – Consumerist
• Home Equity Theft: How a Man’s Home Was Seized Over $8.41 in Unpaid Taxes – Foundation for Economic Education
• How Does Someone Lose Their House Over A $474 Water Bill? – Consumerist
• John Stossel: Government is stealing homes – TribLIVE.com
• Left with nothing: This man owed $134 in property taxes. The District sold the lien to an investor who foreclosed on his $197,000 house and sold it. He and many other homeowners like him were – The Washington Post
• Losing Home Over $200- Tax Lien Fallout – NPR
• Mistakes put homes in peril: This woman’s family thought her $639.47 tax bill was paid off. They didn’t know the D.C. tax office still listed a debt: $44.79. Because of the mix-up, she lost her home. – The Washington Post

• A 93-Year-Old Woman Couldn’t Pay Her $2,300 Tax Bill. The Government Sold Her Home and Kept the Money – Reason

• Government Corruption: People Losing Homes & Land over Tax Bills as low as $40 – Off Grid Survival

• They Fell Behind on Their Property Taxes. So the Government Sold Their Homes—and Kept the Profits. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear 94-year-old Geraldine Tyler’s case challenging home equity theft. – Reason

• Travesty in Arizona- Disabled Vet Loses His Home over $236 in Unpaid Taxes – American Thinker

Home Seized Over $8.41 Owed in Taxes

• For $8.41 in Unpaid Taxes, the Government Took Uri Rafaeli’s House – WSJ
• Man’s home seized for owing $8.41 in taxes – FOX 2 KTVU
• Michigan man, 83, who ‘mistakenly’ underpaid property taxes by $8.41 has his house
• Michigan county treasurer rebuked for seizing retiree’s home over $8 tax debt – Fox News
• SEIZED by local government, which sold it and kept $24,500 profit – Daily Mail Online
• Opinion: Government should not be able to take a home as payment for an $8 debt – Detroit News
• Rafaeli, LLC v. Oakland County – Pacific Legal Foundation

Local Stories

Arizona

• Arizona owners can lose homes over as little as $50 in back taxes – AZ Central

Baltimore

• City asks legislators to curtail home loss because of tax liens – Baltimore Sun

Brooklyn

• ‘It’s Highway Robbery!’ Brooklyn Senior Residents Protest Against City Seizing Homes – BKReader

Chicago / Cook County

• Cook County Makes Millions By Selling Property Tax Debt — But At What Cost? – NPR
• How Predatory Tax-Lien Sales Destroyed Homeownership for African Americans in Chicago – Bloomberg

Cuyahoga County, Ohio

• Cuyahoga County tax delinquencies jump to $242 million- Here’s why and what the county is doing – cleveland.com

D.C.

• Left in the dark. Despite warnings, D.C. tax office’s address records found rife with errors, preventing bills and critical notices from reaching homeowners – The Washington Post
• Groundbreaking protections proposed for D.C. homeowners behind on taxes – The Washington Post

Detroit, Michigan

• Detroit homeowners overtaxed $600 million – Detroit News
• Detroit’s tax foreclosures indefensible – Detroit Free Press
• Economists back study that found Detroit still inflating property taxes – Detroit News
• Investigation Reveals Detroit Overcharged Homeowners On Property Tax After Recession – NPR
• Law prof. says 85% of Detroit homes taxed illegally, contributing to massive foreclosure rates – Michigan Radio
• Study: Bad assessments prompt 10K Detroit foreclosures – Detroit News
• Study finds Detroit’s foreclosure crisis fueled by illegal tax assessments – Detroit Metro Times

• Foreclosed for the cost of an iPhone. That’s life in Wayne County. – Michigan Radio

• Michigan counties accused of illegally profiting from tax foreclosure auctions – mlive.com

• Scenes From the Foreclosure Crisis- Water, Land and Housing in Michigan – Truth OUt

Wall St

• Hedge funds dominate Miami-Dade tax lien sales, to critics dismay – Miami Herald
• Tax lien investing: Investors target property tax deadbeats – CNN Money
• The New Tax Man: Big Banks And Hedge Funds – HuffPost
• Wall Street Finds Lucrative Market In Tax Liens – WBUR News
• Wall Street Finds Lucrative Market In Tax Liens – NPR

• Big Banks Accused Of Buying Tax Liens Through Secretive Front Companies In Order To Foreclose – The Moderate Voice

• Big Banks Are Stealing Homes Even Though Mortgages Are Totally Paid Off – Freedom Outpost

• How Big Banks Can Steal Your Home From You Even If Your Mortgage Is Totally Paid Off – Activist Post

Reports

• Tax Lien Sales: Elderly Are Losing Homes While Investors Reap Big Profits Report Documents a Growing National Crisis; States Urged to Reform Tax Laws – National Consumer Law Center – PDF
• The Other Foreclosure Crisis: Property Tax Lien Sales – National Consumer Law Center – PDF