A Miami homeowner has filed an amended lawsuit against the city, alleging that municipal officials are attempting to take private property through what he describes as an abusive permitting process. The legal action, brought by Charles “Chad” Trausch, claims that the city’s practices could impact more than 1,000 homes in Miami.
Trausch and his wife Stephanie purchased their Buena Vista neighborhood home for $710,000 in 2021. When they applied for a permit to build a two-bedroom, two-bathroom addition last year, the city allegedly told them that no permit would be issued unless Trausch deeded part of his front yard to the city for public right-of-way.
“For twenty months, the city withheld [Trausch’s] permit because he refused to give up half his front yard,” according to the lawsuit. The complaint further states: “Once Trausch hired attorneys, ‘the city suddenly decided to ‘approve’ [Trausch’s] waiver request’ without explanation.”
The amended complaint was filed with assistance from attorneys Ari Bargil and Suranjan Sen of the Institute for Justice. They argue that Miami has been taking property by “systematically extorting hundreds of Miami residents.” According to the Institute for Justice, more than 1,000 homes on 66 streets are potentially affected by this practice.
The complaint also alleges that since Trausch submitted his application in spring 2024, construction costs have risen significantly. His lawyers estimate it will now cost over $200,000 to complete the planned addition.
A spokesperson for the city said they would respond to The Real Deal’s request for comment but had not yet provided a statement at press time.
The lawsuit contends that Miami cannot expand any right-of-way without compensating homeowners and accuses the city of violating constitutional protections against uncompensated takings and due process under the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments. It describes Miami’s procedures as subjecting people “to a shakedown.”
According to Trausch and his attorneys, when homeowners seek land-use permits such as those needed for additions or renovations, the city demands expanded rights-of-way based on base building lines—areas where owners cannot build but still retain ownership. However, they allege that instead of respecting these setbacks as non-buildable zones owned by residents, Miami has been requiring homeowners to transfer actual deeds for these areas.
The Institute for Justice reports that this practice has gone on for years. Citing testimony from a city employee in a related federal case involving one of Trausch’s neighbors, they state there have been “hundreds” of similar demands made by Miami officials. The purpose is described as landbanking so roads can eventually be widened on these streets.
