The American Association of Small Property Owners (AASPO) is the only national grassroots organization for the ten million small owners of residential and commercial investment properties, as well as homeowners, landowners and anyone who owns real estate.  Our goal is to restore common sense to regulation and protect private property rights. AASPO is classified by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) organization.

AASPO pursues its mission in many ways, including representing small property owners at Congressional hearings, in the U.S. Supreme Court, and in numerous proceedings of regulatory agencies, state legislatures, and state and federal courts.  AASPO operates through three project groups: Litigation, Public Policy Advocacy, and Communications.

Litigation.  AASPO's litigation project group provides targeted services to establish landmark legal precedent in defense of private property rights and participates as amicus curiae in cases of national significance before federal and state appellate courts and in the U.S. Supreme Court.

To date, AASPO has filed eleven amicus briefs before the U.S. Supreme Court.  On the state level, AASPO provides either amicus support or direct representation to parties involved in property rights disputes that will set important legal precedent on policies and practices of state and local governments.  No other public policy organization handles the full range of legal issues impacting real estate and private property ownership, thus propelling AASPO to fill an important void.

Advocacy. AASPO engages the public policy advocacy group in projects which encompass all federal Congressional testimony; federal legislation involving property rights, housing and community development, environmental regulation and tax policy; state and local legislation; and, federal or state regulations comments and participation in regulatory proceedings.  

AASPO supports systemic reform of institutions. One project promoted expansion of the Utah Private Property Ombudsman model for dispute resolution involving government agencies and private property owners.  Another addressed the housing and mortgage foreclosure crisis by advocating mediation services for problem loans.  A third successfully advocated inclusion of consumer financial protection for military families and dispute resolution in Dodd-Frank.  A project that has been ongoing since the controversial U.S. Supreme Court decision in Kelo v. City of New London involves advocacy on the state and local level to reform eminent domain procedures to protect the constitutional rights of all property owners.  

AASPO's most lasting accomplishment was its pivotal role in ending more than 25 years of rent control in Massachusetts through a citizen referendum in 1994.  

Communications.  Communications is the cornerstone of our strategy: to get the message out to the media, general public and elected officials, and to motivate grassroots property owners everywhere. Our publications, Internet presence and conferences are designed to provide information and education to property owners and to the general public. AASPO's print newsletter, The Small Property Owner, was voted the Best Independent Real Estate Newsletter by the National Association of Real Estate Editors.  

AASPO was founded on the belief that hard work and the generosity of financial supporters will put the American dream of buying real estate, using it responsibly, and building economic security within the grasp of far more Americans.  

Contact: F. Patricia Callahan at 202-244-6277 or aaspo@aol.com.