‘They’re taxing him out’: Minnesota man is suing after his modest 1-bedroom home build spiked his property value 300%

Steve Reinke helped his son Scott build a modest one-bedroom home in Isanti County, Minnesota, in 2015. The goal was affordability: The total cost of land and materials came to just over $130,000. Eleven years later, the county has assessed the property at just over $484,000 for 2027.

Reinke says the property tax bill has become nearly as large as the mortgage payment, and the county hasn't explained why the valuation jumped so dramatically.

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"We built it to keep the costs down because it was all he could afford. Now it's getting to the point where they're taxing him out of it," Reinke told KSTP .

The property is a one-bedroom home with a small living room, small kitchen and large garage on more than 18 acres — 80% of which is wetland that can't be developed. Recent independent appraisals valued it as low as $270,000.

The family has filed a lawsuit and a court hearing is set for May 7 in St. Paul.

"We're going to go there with all of our information and all of the quotes that show what the cost is, and we're hoping to get it lowered back down to where it should be — down to 380, right in there," Reinke said .

Moneywise received the following statement from Elisha Long, County Assessor at Isanti County:

"Due to the pending litigation, I am unable to discuss specific details regarding the property in question."

Since the property was improved, the increase in its market value has been consistent with changes in property values throughout Isanti County and reflects typical market trends over the past 12 years.

Reinke's frustration is shared by homeowners across the country grappling with assessments that bear little resemblance to what their properties would actually sell for.

According to a Lincoln Institute of Land Policy study , there are dramatic disparities in effective tax rates — with assessment limits and inconsistent appraisal practices shifting tax burdens in ways that often hit individual homeowners hardest.

The study found that the average effective tax rate on a median-valued homestead was 1.213% across 53 major U.S. cities in 2025 — but rates vary based on property tax reliance, local government spending levels, property values and how different property types are classified for taxation.