Taxpayer Gets Denied Fair Market Value in Tax Foreclosure Case

A Michigan taxpayer seeking the full market value of his foreclosed property over a $1,100 tax debt was denied by the Sixth Circuit.

Donald Freed’s home was sold at auction well below what he perceived to be the fair market value, but the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit said Wednesday that he’s only entitled to recover the auction proceeds, minus the debt, in his lawsuit against Gratiot County.

Freed wasn’t entitled to fair market value on the sale, the court said, citing the US Supreme Court’s May ruling in Tyler v. Hennepin County. In that case, ...