

In Geraldine Tyler v. Hennepin County, Minn., the U.S. Supreme Court determined that if a county retains the excess value of a homeowner’s property, over and above the tax debt owed, it is a violation of the takings clause of the U.S. Constitution. The decision will change laws in several states across the country.
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Excess Equity Watch is your consolidated hub to monitor this issue and chart the progress as each afflicted state harmonizes its Tax Foreclosure Sale legislation to the SCOTUS ruling.
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Michigan family handed defeat in Supreme Court opinion – but not a total oneWednesday, June 24, 2026 The Pung family of Michigan sought to prove that fair market value of a property is the true measure of just compensation in a tax foreclosure sale in their case against Isabella County. The Supreme Court disagreed on multiple points, but the procedural battle isn’t over yet. The Legal Description talked to |
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In Pung v. Isabella County, Supreme Court considers next question after TylerWednesday, January 7, 2026 In what is shaping up to be another landmark case in the field of excess equity foreclosures, Pung v. Isabella County will go before the Supreme Court later this year. While Tyler v. Hennepin County asked whether excess equity belongs to the property owner when the government takes a property, Pung asks h
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U.S. Supreme Court agrees to hear Michigan excess equity caseWednesday, October 22, 2025 
When a Michigan home was auctioned for significantly less than its valuation and later re-sold for the assessed value, lower courts ruled that the former owner was entitled to the surplus proceeds. The U.S. Supreme Court will determine if a fair foreclosure took place. |
California passes law to end home equity theft through property tax reformMonday, October 20, 2025  California is the latest state to end the practice of home equity theft at the institutional level with the enactment of AB 418, which Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law on Oct. 1. The bill forbids local governments from keeping or transferring homes without providing compensation to the former o |
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