Pung v. Isabella County · ¶77

According to the County, the government may depart from the fair-market-value rule whenever the government forecloses on the property based on a tax debt and then sells it at an auction. See Brief for Respondent 1–2. In such a case, the County argues, just compensation is measured by the amount for which the property sold at auction, not the fair market value. On this theory, if a taxpayer owes any taxes, then the government can take the entire property belonging to that taxpayer, sell it at auction at a vastly reduced price, and then return to the taxpayer only the “surplus.” Ibid. Thus, for instance, if a family with a $400,000 property owed the taxing authority $1,000, the County could take their home, sell it for $1,000, and return nothing.

slip opinion
Source edition
Passage preview. Read in context for the complete text, notes and references.