On July 10, 2024, Governor Phil Murphy signed a tax sale revision law (A3772/S-2334), which modifies the process for investors engaged in tax sale foreclosures and provides steps for homeowners to protect their equity. Senator Brian Stack (D-33) introduced this law in January 2024 in part because of the case of a 94-year-old Black woman named Geraldine Tyler, who lost her home and equity in the tax sale foreclosure process. In 1999, Mrs. Tyler purchased a one-bedroom condominium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She lived in the condominium until 2010 when problems in the neighborhood prompted her to rent an apartment in a safer area. She experienced financial difficulties, leading her to get $2,300 in tax arrears, which increased to $15,000 with penalties and interest. In 2015, Hennepin County, Minnesota, seized her condominium, sold it for $40,000, and pocketed $25,000 in surplus equity. On May 25, 2023, the United States Supreme Court unanimously held in Tyler v. Hennepin County that the municipality violated the Takings Clause of the U.S. Constitution when they stripped and retained Mrs. Tyler’s equity.
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