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Allodium

This segment was inspired by Steve, who writes: ;

Dear Editor,

I met a person last year who said there was a way of removing your
property tax from your home, all three taxes (land, air, house), so you
didn't have to pay any more taxes on it. He explained a few things that
had to be done first before you can follow through to remove the taxes
on your home, and yes there are three separate taxes on any ones home.
Can you find out what way to do this?

Steve,

The subject you raise goes much deeper than just taxes. It's a
fundamental question of ownership.

Question: If my land can be taken from me for failure to pay
the taxes, do I really own it?

Answer: Of course not. You rent it. You are merely a tenant.

The ins and outs of property ownership can be complex. A so-called
owner is usually referred to as possessing a "bundle of rights."
The metaphor refers to a bundle of sticks. All of the sticks making up the
bundle collectively represent all the possible rights which can be owned
in a property.

If one person owns all the sticks in the bundle, then he has absolute
ownership. Another term for this is allodium. Black's Law
Dictionary defines:

Allodium. Land held absolutely in one's own right,
and not of any lord or superior; land not subject to feudal duties or
burdens. An estate held by absolute ownership, without recognizing any
superior to whom any duty is due on account thereof.

Land held in allodium is called allodial. Black's says in part
that allodial is the "opposite of feudal." Black's defines
feud in part:

Feud. An estate in land held of a superior on
condition of rendering him services. An inheritable right to the use and
occupation of lands, held on condition of rendering services to the lord
or proprietor, who himself retains the property in the lands.
[synonymous with ...] "fief", or "fee".

Another interesting definition from Black's:

Feudal possession. The equivalent of "seisin" under
the feudal system.

Leads us to this definition in part:

Seisin. Possession of real property under claim of
freehold estate. The completion of the feudal investiture, by which the
tenant was admitted into the feud, and performed the rights of
homage and fealty.

If I have piqued your interest thus-far, then I highly suggest you look
up definitions for the words homage and fealty.

Question: I have a warranty deed to my land. If I don't own
it, who does?

Answer: Good question. The answer is a matter of conjecture.
One thing is sure though, it's not you.

The quickest way to cut through the B.S. and find a culprit, is usually
by following the money.

Depending upon which State your land is in, property taxes are
initially collected by the Township, the Parrish, or sometimes directly by
the County. Delinquent taxes are usually collected by the County. That
tells me that the Townships are acting as agents for the Counties. But the
Counties are sending most of the money to the States.

The States even tell the Counties how much to collect. A lot of people
think it's the County Assesssor who does that, but it's not. The State
tells the County how much money it should pay. The Assessor decides how to
spread it around so everyone pays their "fair share."

When a parcel of land is foreclosed for back-taxes, it's the State that
does it, not the County. I've seen many examples of the paperwork they
use. For example, in Michigan, the Auditor General certifies that
taxes have been unpaid for a certain period of time, and quotes a statute
which supposedly applies. In the same document, he quits-claim to
the State Department of Natural Resources.

Later, after some time passes, said Department issues a quit-claim deed
to the State of Michigan. A clause in the deed always declares that an
officer of the DNR has examined the property and found it to be
abandoned. The state takes possession of the land, and either
keeps it or resells it, which would seem to be the end of things.

It's important to realize that a quit-claim deed does not even pretend
to convey clear title to land. The grantor in a quit-claim deed (that's
the person signing the deed, the one who is granting the land away) does
not claim he owns any interest in it. He simply says, "if I own any
interest, then I grant it to the grantee (person receiving the interest)."

It's all good for appearances. It looked as though you owned the land,
until the state took it from you. It looks as though the state owns the
land. But who owns the state? Certainly not the people. The states are
sub-corporations of the United States. Any vestage of the original
independent sovereign states are long gone. Further, we know that the
United States went bankrupt in 1933, and is owned by the same groups of
families who own the Federal
Reserve Banks.

The list of possible claims seems to go on and on. Fortunately there is
a principal in law which states "Notice to agent is notice to principal."

How Did We Lose Our Land?

Here, I call your attention to an interesting definition, again from
Black's:

Escheat. A reversion of property to the state in
consequence of a want of any individual competent to inherit. [...snip]
The word "escheat" in this country, merely indicates the preferable
right of the state to an estate left vacant, and without there being any
one in existence able to make claim thereto.

It seems to me, the million dollar question is:

When the state takes land on which back-taxes are due, is the
operating principle of law delinquent taxes, or
abandonment?

Answer: You be the judge. But I'm guessing it's abandonment.

I have a friend named Art, who has the distinction of having held on to
a parcel of land longer, without paying the taxes, than anyone I've ever
known of. How long? Eight years. Art thinks he could have held it forever,
if it hadn't become too much trouble. I think he's probably right.

How did he do it? Art refused to abandon the property. This was Art's
home. He stopped paying the taxes, and as you would expect, the State
filed their paperwork. Art didn't leave. The sheriff came and told Art to
leave, but Art didn't leave. So the sheriff took Art to jail for about
thirty days. When he let Art out, he told him, "Don't go back to that
house, or I'll put you back in jail." Art went back anyway. After about a
year, the sheriff put Art back in jail for another thirty days, and gave
him the same speech on the way out. Art went back anyway. He kept going
back, for eight years, and enjoyed eight vacations courtesy of the county.
Finally Art got tired, and abandoned the place.

Abandonment. That's how we lost our land. That's how we lost our
government too. It's how we lose our families; our children; our God. We
walk away. We get tired. I don't blame Art. He held out longer than anyone
else I know. He did it to prove it could be done, and then he went on to
other battles.

Can I Have Allodial Land?

Sure. If you want it bad enough. If you haven't seen it before, go to
the video store and rent Braveheart. William Wallace was fighting for
allodium. Thanks to him, his people had it-- for a time.

It's not just about taxes, it's about all rights. The right to use the
land as you please. Even the right to make your own laws, and name or
create your own jurisdiction, goes with the allodial rights to land. As
far back in history as you can study, a man's freedom is tied to the land.
Without land to call your own, you have no place to freely exist.

If your land is zoned, then you don't have the freedom to do with your
land as you please. Environmental codes, restrictive covenants, county
health regulations, all dilute your rights in the land. Many of these
so-called laws are enacted unlawfully and unconstitutionally, but
when people fail to object, they abandon their rights.

Here are the steps I would take to establish allodium in land, if I
were to choose this battle:

Acquire a parcel of land which you are willing to walk away from
if the battle becomes too much for you.

Send a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the
authority which collects property taxes for your land. Ask them to
provide evidence of title for all lands in which they claim an
interest of any nature whatsoever. If you manage to get them to
respond at all, they will produce deeds for land which they own by
commonly recognized standards. Such as the township hall. They will
not produce title for your land, or make any claim on it. That which
they do not claim to own, is abandoned by them.

Send a similar FOIA request to the county, if they were not the
same local authority mentioned above. Ask them for any evidence of
title they have in your particular land.

Same with the state. Make sure you send all these requests by
registered mail, with a return card, so you have proof of service. If
you don't get answers, send notices of fault and default at
appropriate time intervals.

Construct a public notice to the effect that you have requested
all these entities to produce evidence of interest in your land, but
that they have produced none. Include the land description. Post the
notice on the public bulletin board at the county courthouse, and
publish it for three consecutive weeks in a local newpaper of record.
Be sure to include the phrase "Notice to agent is notice to
principal."

Construct a public notice, in affidavit form, which includes
copies of all your publications, postings, FOIAs and proofs of
service. Make a claim for all rights, in allodium, in your land.
Include a metes and bounds description. Be sure the affidavit states
that you withold jurisdiction, and are recording only for the purpose
of giving notice to the public. Record your notice with the county
Register of Deeds.

When you receive tax bills, return them refused with a that they
produce evidence of title superior to yours. Do not pay them.

Refuse all subsequent tax and foreclosure notices, and counter
with demands to show cause.

Post visible notices at all attempted tax sales, stating that you
do not abandon your rights in the land.

During all this time, either continuously occupy, or at least
maintain continued custodial care of the land. Never abandon it.

When you get out of jail, keep going back.

Will you succeed? Probably not, but you'll never know unless you try.
Do I recommend this? No. But then I don't recommend anything along these
lines. It's up to each of us to choose our own battles.

Obviously, if everyone did this, the game would be over. There
aren't enough cells for everyone. People are ruled like cattle and sheep,
except that the fences which hold us are constructed in our minds.

I hope this will be a foundation for further study and action. Readers
are welcome to send me your comments and insights to this answer, and I
may append them as time allows.

(Isaiah 33:22) For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our
lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he will save us.

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