Justia Real Estate & Property Law Opinion Summaries

In 2009, Spire Institute (Spire), a nonprofit corporation, entered into an agreement to lease land from Roni Lee, LLC, a for-profit company. By 2012, Spire had constructed Olympic-grade athletic facilities and related improvements on about a quarter of the property. In 2010, Spire sought a real-estate-tax exemption for the entire property under the charitable-use exemption. The tax commissioner denied exemption, finding that Roni Lee used the property for land development and commercial leasing and that Spire was not “engaged in charitable activity in any substantial way.” The commissioner also denied exemption of he undeveloped property under the prospective-use doctrine. The Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) affirmed the denial of exemption. The Supreme Court affirmed the BTA’s decision, holding that Spire failed to establish that any portion of the subject property qualified for a charitable-use exemption. View "Geneva Area Recreational, Educ. & Athletic Trust v. Testa" on Justia Law

The property owners of three undeveloped residential lots in the Westerville City School District filed complaints with the Franklin County Board of Revision (BOR) seeking reductions in the county auditor’s valuations of all three parcels for tax year 2011. The BOR adopted the the opinion of the owners’ appraiser and granted the requested reductions. The Westerville City School District Board of Education appealed. The Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) adopted the valuations of the school board’s appraiser, which were higher than the valuations arrived at by both the owner’s appraiser and the auditor. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the BTA did not act unlawfully or unreasonably by finding that the school board met its burden of proof at the BTA hearing and did not violate Ohio Const. art. XII, 2, which requires that property “be taxed by uniform rule according to value.” View "Westerville City Schs. Bd. of Educ. v. Franklin County Bd. of Revision" on Justia Law

Team Rentals, LLC, the owner of a two-story office building in Summit County, sought a reduction of the value assigned to its property for tax year 2012. The Summit County Board of Revision (BOR) reduced the value based explicitly on a bank appraisal presented by Team Rentals. The Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) reversed the BOR’s valuation and reinstated the higher valuation originally assessed by the county auditor, concluding that the BOR’s determination to reduce the value record was unsupported by competent and probative evidence. The Supreme Court reversed the decision of the BTA, holding (1) the BTA misapprehended the competency of the evidence and ignored case law barring the use of the auditor’s original valuation as “default value” under the circumstances presented in this case; and (2) a legal error in the BOR’s determination prevented affirmance of the BOR’s determination. Remanded for an independent determination of value based upon all the evidence in the record. View "Copley-Fairlawn City Sch. Dist. Bd. of Educ. v. Bd. of Revision" on Justia Law

Plaintiff filed a class action complaint alleging that Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) failed timely to record in the appropriate county recorder’s office the satisfaction of her residential mortgage within ninety days after payoff, as required by Ohio Rev. Code 5301.36(B). After the class was certified, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) issued a cease-and-desist order (consent order) to Fannie Mae. Fannie Mae moved to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. The trial court dismissed the complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. The court of appeals reversed, concluding that the FHFA consent order did not divest the trial court of jurisdiction. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the consent order did not preclude the trial court from exercising jurisdiction under 12 U.S.C. 4635(b), the federal statute governing judicial review of FHFA orders; but (2) 12 U.S.C. 4617(j)(4) barred the trial court from ordering Fannie Mae to pay damages under section 5301.36(C) while Fannie Mae is under FHFA’s conservatorship. View "Radatz v. Fed. Nat’l Mortgage Ass’n" on Justia Law

After the Cuyahoga County fiscal officer valued residential real estate owned by Landowner for tax year 2009, Landowner filed a complaint seeking a reduction. At a hearing before the Cuyahoga County Board of Revision (BOR) Landowner presented an appraisal report along with the testimony of the appraiser. The BOR rejected the appraisal and retained the valuation determined by the fiscal officer. Landowner appealed to the Board of Tax Appeals (BTA). When the BOR certified the record of the proceedings to the BTA, it failed to include the audio recording of the oral testimony before the BOR. The BTA adopted the appraiser’s valuation of the property after reviewing the record, incomplete as it was. The Supreme Court vacated the BTA’s decision, holding that the BTA committed plain error by adopting the appraisal valuation given the absence of potentially important evidence that ought to have been part of the record. Remanded for further proceedings with a view to performing an independent valuation of the property. View "Cannata v. Cuyahoga County Bd. of Revision" on Justia Law

At issue in this case was the value for tax year 2012 of four residential properties used as rental properties. The Franklin County Board of Revision (BOR) ordered reductions based on unspecified area sale prices and rents. The Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) retained the BOR’s reduced valuations of the property. The Columbus City Schools Board of Education (BOE) appealed, asking that the Supreme Court reverse the BTA’s decision and reinstate the original valuations found by the county auditor. The Supreme Court affirmed based on the authority of Columbus City Schools Bd. of Educ. v. Franklin County Bd. of Revision, in which the Court confronted similar claims in an appeal by the BOE and rejected the claims because the BOE had not raised and preserved them before the BTA. View "Oak View Props., LLC v. Franklin County Bd. of Revision" on Justia Law

503 South Front Street, LP, a for-profit corporation, owned 30,000 square feet of commercial space and leased the property for a term of thirty years to ShadoArt Productions, a nonprofit organization. ShadoArt filed an application for exemption under Ohio Rev. Code 5709.12 and 5709.121, which statutes articulate the substantive requirements for public-use and charitable-use exemptions. The tax commissioner denied the request. The Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) affirmed. On appeal, ShadoArt argued that because Ohio Rev. Code 5715.27, which permits certain long-term lessees to file applications for exemption, authorizes it to file an application for exemption, it was also entitled to receive an exemption under sections 5709.12 and 5709.121. The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the BTA, holding (1) amended section 5715.27 did not alter the substantive requirements for any specific exemption under chapter 5709; and (2) ShadoArt’s claim for exemption did not satisfy the requirements set forth in sections 5709.12 and 5709.121 because the property does not belong to a charitable institution. View "ShadoArt Prods., Inc. v. Testa" on Justia Law

Petitioners executed a promissory note and mortgage in favor of Mortgage Electronic Registrations Systems, Inc. The notary acknowledgment on the mortgage was left blank. The mortgage was subsequently recorded with the county recorder. The interest in the mortgage was later assigned to Bank. Thereafter, Petitioners initiated a Chapter 13 bankruptcy and commenced an adversary proceeding seeking to avoid the mortgage as defectively executed. The bankruptcy court determined that its interpretation of Ohio Rev. Code 1301.401 would be dispositive in this case and certified to the Supreme Court questions of state law concerning whether section 1301.401 has an effect on the case. The Supreme Court answered that section 1301.401 applies to all recorded mortgages in Ohio and acts to provide constructive notice to the world of the existence and contents of a recorded mortgage that was deficiently executed under Ohio Rev. Code 5301.01. View "In re Messer" on Justia Law

Rural Health Collaborative of Southern Ohio, Inc. owned a facility in Adams County that was operated under lease by Dialysis Clinic, Inc. Rural Health filed a charitable-use exemption application for the property. The tax commissioner denied the exemption. The Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) concluded that Rural Health qualified as a charitable institution under Ohio Rev. Code 5709.121(A)(2) and granted the exemption. The Supreme Court vacated the BTA’s grant of exemption and remanded, holding (1) the BTA did not abuse its discretion in determining that Rural Health qualifies as a charitable institution; but (2) BTA erred in granting the exemption because the BTA did not fully analyze the claim under Ohio Rev. Code 5709.121(A)(1). Remanded. View "Rural Health Collaborative of S. Ohio, Inc. v. Testa" on Justia Law

In 2010, the Washington County Auditor determined a value of $9,091,000 for a Lowe’s Home Center store in Marietta. Lowe’s filed a complaint before the Washington County Board of Revision (BOR) seeking a reduction to $3,600,000. The BOR retained the auditor’s valuation. On appeal, Lowe’s and the County presented competing appraisals. The Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) adopted the County’s appraisal, concluding that the County’s comparables were more appropriate. Lowe’s appealed, arguing that the BTA misapplied the Supreme Court’s decision in Meijer Stores Ltd. Partnership v. Franklin County Bd. of Revision by adopting the type of appraisal in this case that the BTA rejected in Rite Aid of Ohio, Inc. v. Washington County Bd. of Revision. The Supreme Court explained the significance of Meijer Stores in its decision in the Rite Aid appeal, also issued today. The Supreme Court vacated the BTA’s decision in the instant case, holding that reading the BTA decision in light of that explanation identified a significant omission in the BTA’s analysis. Remanded. View "Lowe's Home Ctrs., Inc. v. Washington County Bd. of Revision" on Justia Law