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Article: The Baltimore Sun Jay Hancock column: Ground rent law violates the principles of due process, fair play.
- Article from:
- The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, MD)
- Article date:
- December 13, 2006
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 The Baltimore Sun. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Jay Hancock
Dec. 13--Because Deloris McNeil missed paying a $96-a-year ground rent bill, she lost the Fayette Street house she had bought for $44,500 and lived in for years. The tiny, delinquent bill morphed into creditor-seizure powers that trumped fair play, common sense and fundamental rights.
Such abuses, described in The Sun' s series this week on ground rent, pass every test for requiring legislative action. Property seizures by lenders and landlords are sometimes necessary, but I do not exaggerate by saying the rules for ground rent delinquency are medieval. Ground rent originated with English kings who believed they owned God's good ...