Managing Squatters
As we progress with Landlord Mistakes and Self-Managing, today we’ll visit the topic of landlords allowing squatters on their investment property. A squatter is a person who unlawfully occupies an uninhabited building or unused land. They essentially settle on a piece of land without title, right, or payment of rent.
The Trinity Team had this happen recently, and it’s not as easy to get a squatter off your property as you might think. This individual parked a dilapidated ambulance on a property we manage. He was living inside and would not vacate the property. In this situation, we had to call the police, who said they couldn’t do anything, to treat it like an eviction. Our manager had to post an eviction notice on the ambulance and then follow the next legal steps to remove him from the property.
This could be a tumultuous situation if you are self-managing. You’re exposing yourself to risk when allowing a squatter to remain on your property without your consent and without signing a legal lease. Squatters come in different forms, and a visitor who stays more than two weeks and casually “moves in” is also considered a squatter. This individual should be added to the lease with the owner’s consent. They, too, would go through the vetting process in terms of income verification, credit score, criminal background check, and past landlord verification.
You should reap the financial benefits of renting your property. Squatters can be intimidating, but do not allow them!
Trinity Team Management is here for you and will help you seamlessly own an investment property without the headaches that are associated with managing one!
Read more
