‘We are thrilled’: State’s highest court reverses itself in fight over confiscated home equity
'It is protected by the Constitution and that the government cannot take more than what it is owed. This is a great outcome for our clients and all homeowners'
The state Supreme Court in Nebraska has reversed itself in a fight over home equity that was confiscated by the government.
The change of heart might not have been exactly voluntarily, however.
It did have directions from the U.S. Supreme Court to do so.
The fight that developed is becoming more and more common across the nation, even as multiple organizations fight the trend.
It’s the result of homeowners who fall behind on their taxes, and when governments then sell those debts to others and the owners ultimately lose all of their equity.
Lost many times in the judiciary finagling is the fact that homeowners have significant equity in their homes, and that value routinely was being confiscated from them.
For example one Nebraska man lost his $60,000 home over a tax bill for $5,268. When the government sold his home, he got nothing.
But, according to Pacific Legal Foundation, which has fought such cases many times, the court reversal now means that lower courts will determine the value of the property, and how much compensation must be paid.
The legal team’s Christina Martin said, “We are thrilled that after years of litigation, Nebraska finally recognizes Kevin Fair’s and Sandra Nieveen’s right to their hard-earned equity. The Nebraska Supreme Court held that home equity is protected by the Constitution and that the government cannot take more than what it is owed. This is a great outcome for our clients and all homeowners in the state.”
The situation developed when, in 2013, Kevin Fair’s late wife was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and he quit his job to care for her at their Scottsbluff, Nebraska, home. Soon he fell behind on his property taxes and the county sold a tax lien for the unpaid taxes to Continental Resources, a private investor.
The county then issued a deed to the investor for the home and all of the equity.
Sandra also lost her home in similar circumstances, the legal team said.
The two sued, with the help of Legal Aid of Nebraska, but the state’s high court rejected their case.
Then the PLF got involved, asking the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene.
“Last May, the United States Supreme Court ruled in another PLF case — Tyler v. Hennepin County — that if the government takes more than what is owed to satisfy a property tax debt, it violates the Fifth Amendment’s Takings Clause. After the Supreme Court decided Tyler, it granted Kevin’s and Sandra’s petitions and sent their cases back to the Nebraska Supreme Court to reconsider their claims in light of Tyler,” the PFL reported.
“In view of the Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling, the Nebraska Supreme Court reevaluated Kevin’s and Sandra’s claims and ruled that they must be paid for the excess equity that remained after their property tax debt was satisfied. The court sent the cases back to the trial court to determine how much the homes are worth and thus how much compensation Kevin and Sandra are owed.”
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