# "I own it but it's theirs"... squatters' rights trump property ownership



## SouthernBoy (Jun 27, 2007)

I have read of these cases before and man if it doesn't frost my butt when I hear about this sort of theft. I am VERY property-oriented, believing as Jefferson said that you cannot be truly free unless you own property. I would be more than incensed if something like this ever were to happen to me. So my questions are...

Would it be legal to forceably remove these maggots under the trespassing laws? Or just because you are the legal owner and they have no right to be on your property, let alone in your home how might you handle this? What would you do if it were your home? And can you enter and force them out under gunpoint in your state (I do not know what the laws are in my state regarding squatters)?

The owner did make one bad mistake by allowing them to stay in her home until after Christmas, which set a precedent. But still, she owns this property so I should think that what she says, goes.

Woman can?t sell home for disturbing reason


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## Bisley (Aug 24, 2008)

This is a case of the squatters gambling that the owner can't or won't find and pay a lawyer that will follow through on the process of removing these people. It would be very costly and take a long time, in the present 'climate.'

The correct solution would probably be to catch the squatters away, and hire movers to move their stuff to storage and pay for one month. Change the locks on the house and occupy it. They would sue, of course, but actually occupying the property would be a better platform from which to fight a legal battle. At least, the real owner would be forcing them to expend their resources (which they probably don't have) instead being in that position, herself. I'm betting that the police position would be that they cannot remove the legal owner, either.


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## PT111Pro (Nov 15, 2014)

In this political correct climate it depends who is occupying. In other liberal countries that are a little more liberal advanced, squatters can even occupy a home that is occupied by the owner. They just wait until the owner goes shopping or to work and then they move in. After that especially when they move in with children and are black and Muslim it takes years with lawyers and court fees to remove them. Like with all the house pest once invested you never get rid of it anymore. One reason the liberals want to disarm citizen. In a armed nation that kind of political housing projects seldom really works in the long run. 

Like in other liberal countries like South Africa, Europe, if you can afford a security guard that is 24/7 on your property and is able to stop a invasion, or you are government or politically protected and the TAX payer pays for your security guard than you are OK. But if you can't afford $ 50 000 and mor for your protection than it's bad. Marxism don't recognizes private ownership of anything. In Marxism not even your underwear is yours.

The law is always subject to political interpretation. If you cant enforce the law, the written law is not worth the paper that the law is written on.


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## GCBHM (Mar 24, 2014)

In the state of Alabama, if you give dwelling to someone it is possible that they can press you for dwelling rights. For example, if they receive mail at your address, they can "prove" they have residence there, and then you're in a battle to prove they are not. The law is on their side, unfortunately, and you must go through legal channels to remove them. They will have to be given notice and time to move out. 

I'm not sure about squatters, however. I believe if you encounter an unwelcome guest and immediately demand them to leave, you have a right to remove them from your home, by force if necessary; however, if a situation escalates to where you feel compelled to remove them by force of gun point, and you end up having to shoot them, you'd better kill them. You do not want them giving "their side" of the story. If you give them refuge you are opening a door to a whole other set of circumstances that you may not want to deal with, and unfortunately, the law is generally going to side with a "squatter".

I actually had to deal with a situation like this where my wife had agreed to let a kid her family had taken in some years ago (her mother/father ran a refuge of sorts for unwanted kids some years ago and this kid was one of them) stay with us for a couple weeks so he could get back on his feet and find another place to stay. At the time, we had just met, and I had not yet moved in, so it was not something she felt compelled to discuss with me. She knew him pretty well, and he was generally a pretty mild-mannered kid who just didn't seem to get it together. He'd been in some trouble with the law for passing a bad check, but was trying to get it together. 

Well, this kid, now a 27 yr old man, turned two weeks into two months. Despite our best efforts to help him find a job and get back on his feet and find another place to stay, he decided to set up residence (in his mind he had become part of the family) and nestled himself quite nicely into our basement. Now at first he was a help, but eventually he began to get bitter toward us b/c we had life so good and he didn't. He started lashing out and his behavior became unpredictable. It got to a point where I finally told her he needed to go, and she agreed. When she told him the following morning, he became enraged and tried to take a stand literally telling her that she had to give him 30 days to move out. 

After some arguing btwn she and him, I stepped in and told him to get out now, or I would put him out. I was, admittedly, rather persuasive, and my very athletic 6' 300lb step-son was as well, so this guy left after pitching a bit of a fit. I know it could have gone a different way, especially if the police had been called into it, but I was determined not to call them b/c doing so would have made it an official legal action which may not have worked out to my favor. 

Lessons learned? Never open your home to someone you're not willing to let stay for an indefinite period of time. Doing so could expose you to trouble you are not prepared to deal with.


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## Scorpion8 (Jan 29, 2011)

So, you go off to work and come home to find someone squatting in your house. Isn't that considered breaking-and-entering and couldn't you propose a 9mm/.45ACP solution to the issue? Anybody who enters MY house and refuses to leave is now considered a threat. Seems to me that you start shooting the first one and the rest will find a reason to depart.


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## PT111Pro (Nov 15, 2014)

Scorpion8 said:


> So, you go off to work and come home to find someone squatting in your house. Isn't that considered breaking-and-entering and couldn't you propose a 9mm/.45ACP solution to the issue? Anybody who enters MY house and refuses to leave is now considered a threat. Seems to me that you start shooting the first one and the rest will find a reason to depart.


No not in a liberal mind. May be you don't like it but the typical liberal voter has no problem with that at all. In Australia for example they droped that issue completely, there is it not even a crime anymore to invade a home when the home owner is present. The liberal government there kicked the law out and now they argue what a home invasion is. Until they have made a new definition it is no law and therefore no crime to invade homes. But first always they disarm people to make them defenseless against the major democrat voters. A weapon ban is urgent to implement a liberal government system.
Something to read:
No Cookies | dailytelegraph.com.au
Something to watch:




One reason why the citizens arm themselves with illegal guns.


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## GCBHM (Mar 24, 2014)

Scorpion8 said:


> So, you go off to work and come home to find someone squatting in your house. Isn't that considered breaking-and-entering and couldn't you propose a 9mm/.45ACP solution to the issue? Anybody who enters MY house and refuses to leave is now considered a threat. Seems to me that you start shooting the first one and the rest will find a reason to depart.


Well, in this instance, the woman moved out of state, and learned that someone had moved into her home through her realtor, so she wasn't occupying the house at the time meaning they posed no threat to her. Not only that, but the people who moved into the hosue claim they did so legally, having later learned they'd been scammed by a phony landlord. Here's the problem, though.

The owner made the mistake allowing them to stay, which set a precedent, as the SouthernBoy said. As it turns out, a costly mistake. NEVER, under any circumstances, allow the people to stay. For all we know, they never paid anyone anything! It is very naive to think there are not people like that out there. Now, if you enter your own home without proper documentation, you could be legally shot and killed as an intruder.


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## PT111Pro (Nov 15, 2014)

> GCBHM
> Now, if you enter your own home without proper documentation, you could be legally shot and killed as an intruder.


Right - and if the intruder when invaded your home while you were working calls the police on you, they evict you from your own home. The prove that you are the legal home owner is in the safe in the home - right? Are you sure it is still there when you come home to a invaded home? And even if you keep the papers in a lock box in the bank or in a lawyer office you have to get it first the next business day (hopefully it was not a Friday) and than you have to sue them out. Right. Well they say you invaded them to stay and obviously changed your mind. It ends up in a he said she said. It takes months and the government with their new liberal justice system make sure it creates a precedence. It take months and months even years until you got a final verdict from a liberal court.

I know a case in Bavaria where a home was Home Occupied (Hausbewsetzung) like the liberals over there like to call it. They don't call it invasion or burglary they call it Homeoccupation. Like here in the US, there are no illegal people, they are undocumented when they come from the right direction. The home owner in Bavaria had lost his life savings, 2nd Mortgage on the house on legal fees for court and lawyer and decided to stop that liberal nonsense. He went to Macedonian street gangsters to evict the good people that lived in his home protected by Taxpayers money and by Tax-paid Lawyers. Well the Macedonians get caught and the Home owner went to prison for 4 years.


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## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

I think if I owned the home they might just be visited at 3am by Bruno and his brother suggesting they need to leave. Just sayin....... Been watching Sons of Anarchy lately, sounds like a job for them.


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## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

It will have to be resolved in a court of law. Once done, the judge will hopefully issue an eviction notice.

Once a notice has been issued, local PD / SO will have marching orders.


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## GCBHM (Mar 24, 2014)

paratrooper said:


> It will have to be resolved in a court of law. Once done, the judge will hopefully issue an eviction notice.
> 
> Once a notice has been issued, local PD / SO will have marching orders.


And there is literally nothing the PD/SO can do until then. Even then, they squatters will have at least 30 days to vacate, and can literally destroy the house before they leave b/c there is nothing anyone can do to enter the house until then.


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## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

GCBHM said:


> And there is literally nothing the PD/SO can do until then. Even then, they squatters will have at least 30 days to vacate, and can literally destroy the house before they leave b/c there is nothing anyone can do to enter the house until then.


The homeowner can sue for property damage.

That's not saying that they will get anything from it though.


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## SouthernBoy (Jun 27, 2007)

paratrooper said:


> It will have to be resolved in a court of law. Once done, the judge will hopefully issue an eviction notice.
> 
> Once a notice has been issued, local PD / SO will have marching orders.


And this is the real dastardly shame of it. Your property, you own it, and you cannot enjoy quiet use of your property. In my opinion this amounts to a home invasion and therefore, can be met with deadly force. However, I do not know that law regarding this issue in my state.


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## GCBHM (Mar 24, 2014)

paratrooper said:


> The homeowner can sue for property damage.
> 
> That's not saying that they will get anything from it though.


It is more likely they won't get anything but a nice bill from their attorney.


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## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

Yes, it's too bad that there are people like these that take advantage of others and their property. 

Not just squatters, but those that go to the trouble of renting out unoccupied homes to others. I've seen some tv specials and it's quite amazing the length some people go to, to make a buck. Not only rent homes that aren't theirs, but sell them as well.


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## Donn (Jul 26, 2013)

They went thru this in England some time back, and the Government pretty much sided with the squatters. People were prisoners in their own home. If they left and squatters moved in, too bad. Looks like we're headed down the same road.


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## hillman (Jul 27, 2014)

I have a semiautomatic response in hand for any hypothetical squatters.


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## Gruesome (Apr 30, 2013)

I would have a real hard time not using force in this situation. I would be very much in the wrong legally, but the clear moral certainty that it is RIGHT to stick the end of my Smith and Wesson into an intruders eye socket and say GTFO of my house would be hard to ignore. I hope I never have to find out how I would react.


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

We have arranged a solution to the problem, but others using our solution would have to depend upon the honeymoon-period good will of the "squatters."

We have given a small amount of our land—as well as access to our electricity, water, and a bathroom—over to the use of a homeless person. She lives in a derelict RV/camper that someone else gave her, that she expertly parked in the spot we arranged for her.
She has proven to be honest, friendly (when she's taking her medication), and hard-working. We have learned to trust her.

We gave her the space and privileges for no cost at first, but then she asked if she could do handy-person work for us, in order to acquire a little cash every month. So we arranged an exchange: She "pays" us two hours of work, every month, in exchange for her use of our land and utilities. Beyond that, we pay cash for whatever she does.
We wrote out a contract, which both she and we signed. She got a signed copy, and so did we.

Turns out, we did the legally correct thing: She is now our tenant, legally speaking.
That gives all three of us certain rights. One of those rights is eviction. With 30 days' notice, and by showing cause, she can be evicted by law enforcement. Otherwise, we are (very happily) "stuck" with her.

While we are gone, for instance to visit grandchildren, she watches over our property and home. As our tenant, and a legal resident, she has legal standing to call the cops, if something goes wrong or if someone attempts to "squat."

Making her our tenant was the best possible decision for all of us. So far, it's been five years, going on six, and we still have never had cause to regret taking her in.


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## GCBHM (Mar 24, 2014)

Great story! Thanks for sharing that.


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## PT111Pro (Nov 15, 2014)

My neighbors lady just told me a story. It is not only a home owner problem. It can become very fast a problem for a rented apartment too. 
Her daughter lives in Dallas and had in an older housing area rented a 2 bedroom apartment. 

The trouble started when one day a former co-worker came and ask her if she could stay for 3-4 days until her aunt comes back from a vacation. She had left her abusive husband and as soon her aunt is back she will move to the aunt.
Needless to say that the aunt didn't cam back in the next 2 weeks and than no one talked about moving to a aunt anyway. And husband and divorce? Well that was 2 years ago and she never said that. Day's became weeks and weeks than 2 -3 Months.

The police came and surprisingly the invader had even a Drivers License already with that particular address and had prove that all mail for her is delivered to this address. 

The Landlord was not a big help at all, offered help from the company attorney but the neighbors daughter had to pay the attorney fees. 
The housing rules said that in a 2 bedroom apartment 4 people can live and the Landlord himself will not interact with the tenants girl fights with he said she said. 

On the end the neighbors daughter had no other chance than find a new apartement. Not in a short run anyway. It cost my neighbors daughter about minimum $ 8000.00 She had to break the lease, pay a other apartment and deposit and her so called guest was so angry that she had to leave, she ruined the apartment and the Landlord company charged the neighbors daughter in addition to the deposit with additional $ 2500.00 for renovation, carpeting and all kitchen appliances. 

The neighbors lady said, doesn't matter if you own your home or you rent a apartment. If someone shows with a story that get you to tears, take $ 250.00cash (never a credit cart that can be charged by the friend in the hotel) and buy for the friend a hotel room at Motel 6 for @ $40.00 a night until aunt such and such comes back. If 6 nights are not enough may the church or other friends can help out than. This is way cheaper than ruin your reputation in the neighborhood and with the Landlord and paying for breaking the lease and renovation.


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