REAL ESTATE NEWS (Los Angeles, CA) — In which states do homeowners not really own their homes? More and more home owners seem to be complaining that local and state governments are sticking their greedy fingers into the homeowner’s business, trying to take a bigger slice of the economic pie. “Some towns in America are basically stealing peoples homes,” according to consumer advocate journalist John Stossell. In some jurisdictions, one missed property tax payment can lead to the government taking away a private home, selling it, and keeping all of the profits. In come cases, a late payment has led to the loss of the entire home. In one instance, the city kept $286,000 more than the homeowner owed in local property taxes, which was only $900. It gets worse. In another case, a county took away an entire home — over an $8 debt. And recently, a city even took a home from a grandmother, who now must sleep in her car.
The arguably sh!thole state of Michigan is known to be one of the worst culprits. Eleven states allow this kind of home confiscation profiteering, including Oregon and Arizona. But, with Los Angeles and many other California cities unable to take care of their massive, expensive homeless problems, could the once-golden state be next to start stealing homes from the middle class using this trick? Historically, this type of confiscation has been ruled unconstitutional, but those who can barely afford to pay taxes, cannot afford a legal battle, thus cannot afford to fight city hall. When Stossell looked into the matter, he found blatant corruption. In one case, a mayor was using the city to steal houses, then giving the profit straight to his own company, to the tune of $10 million. Because real estate is often the biggest investment that middle-class taxpayers make, this means that these states and cities profit by stealing the life savings of many families, leading to devastated lives.
Fortunately, there are a few legal advocates such as Pacific Legal Foundation, a non-profit that has defended Americans from government overreach and abuse since 1973. Please consider giving them a donation.
The good news is that not all states and municipalities are greedy. In fact, Los Angeles offers a very generous property tax discount for those who like to live in a well-maintained loft condo with amazing character and style. Get a free list of Mills Act historic homes in Downtown or most anywhere in California. Fill out the online form:
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