If I Owe Money to the IRS Are They Going to Take My House? So let’s start by saying that yes the IRS can take your house if you are living in a house and you own that house free and clear and you owe money to the government the IRS is either gonna want you to borrow against that asset or they could potentially seize that asset now that’s a scary thought but for example if you’re living in a multi-million dollar home and owe the government a million dollars they’re not going to want you to continue to live in your multi-million dollar home and oh the government a million dollars so there’s gonna be a little bit of give and take there however the good news from the perspective of most taxpayers is number one it’s not very popular for the IRS to kick people out of their primary residences so seizing primary residence and kicking people out of their homes does it play out very well in the media so the IRS doesn’t usually seize principal residences at alas there are extreme or extenuating circumstances number two is there’s a lot of paperwork involved in seizing a house the IRS agents have to fill out a whole bunch of forms those forms have to get multiple signatures on them they have to go through an attorney and they have to get go through a court process and order through. The IRS to foreclose in your home so that’s a lot of work the IRS agents much prefer to go after low-hanging fruit they go after cash assets they go after bank accounts they go after stock accounts they go after wages to go after things that they can very easily seize so while they can take your house that’s not the first play in the IRS is playbook so generally speaking if you’re proactive in resolving your tax liability your house is generally safe.