Vacant rental homes can instantly become a source of the biggest distress. When a tenant moves out and no new occupant is found immediately, these empty properties can attract unwanted attention. The empty spaces may feel like an inviting opportunity for trespassers and squatters in search of shelter. Without good oversight, what was once a vibrant home can quickly spiral into an uncared-for shell, enticing trouble and anxiety for landlords.
What is squatting?
Squatting implies the unlawful occupation of an uninhabited building or unused land. Clearly, for homeowners, a squatter is someone who occupies your property without your permission. Moreover, this situation can incorporate former tenants who dwell on the property without paying rent after their lease has expired or been terminated.
Unlawful occupants can negatively impact your rental property and make it burdensome to lease to new tenants. To excellently prevent squatters, it is critical to secure your property. If you do not live near your rental home, take into consideration hiring a property management company to monitor the property regularly and handle tenant turnover.
What to do at the first sign of a squatter?
If you notice a squatter on your property, you should immediately contact the police. The longer you let a squatter actually stay, the harder it will be to evict them later. Courts may interpret your failure to act as a sign of consent, making the eviction process more tiring and quite difficult.
Another potential issue takes place if a squatter manages to turn on utilities at the property in their name. In particular areas, doing so can establish legal residency, even if the squatter occupies your property without your permission. If this eventuates, the police may classify the situation as civil rather than criminal.
If the police cannot assist you, the next move is to serve the unlawful occupant with an eviction notice. Merely providing this notice can customarily encourage the squatter to move out voluntarily. Yet, if they refuse to leave, you may need to file an unlawful detainer lawsuit, which will, in turn, start formal eviction proceedings.
The duration of this process can vary depending on the efficacy of the court system in your state, taking anywhere from two weeks to several months. As soon as you attain a judgment in your favor from the court, you can enlist the local sheriff or police to remove the squatter on your behalf.
What to do with a squatter’s leftover property?
Whenever you have successfully evicted your squatters, you necessitate to settle any personal property they may have left behind. Whether they left deliberately or were quite forcefully removed, it’s often natural for them to abandon some belongings.
The following steps are conditional on the laws in your area. In considerable states, you may dispose of these items without consequence. Be that as it may, in other places, you, in all likelihood, may be required to store their belongings in a storage unit at your own expense. If the squatters do not claim their property and pay you back for the storage fees, you may have the right to auction off the items or dispose of them following local regulations.
Handling squatters can be protracted and resource-intensive. To steer away from this, proactive management is primarily key. At Real Property Management Apex, we excellently attend to tenant move-outs and fill vacancies straight away. An occupied rental property is both productively profitable and free from squatters. For more details relating to our property management services in Bellmead, please contact us online or call 254-732-1599.
Originally Published on November 16, 2018
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