Takings

Illinois Will Finally Stop Stripping People of Their Home Equity—3 Years After the Supreme Court Outlawed It

Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed a bill that promises property owners will receive the surplus proceeds when the government seizes their home to satisfy a tax debt.

Billy Binion | 7.16.2026 5:05 PM

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(Illustration: Janceluch/Dreamstime/Midjourney)

In May of this year, a federal judge ruled that Cook County, Illinois, is liable for constitutional violations when it seized people's homes over property tax debts and left them with nothing. That scheme—sometimes referred to as home equity theft—sounds nightmarish. The reality is harsher, however, when you consider the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled the practice unconstitutional nearly three years before this recent ruling.

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