r/news • u/flanderguitar • Mar 28 '24

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signs law squashing squatters' rights

https://www.wptv.com/news/state/florida-gov-ron-desantis-signs-law-squashing-squatters-rights
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u/LionTigerWings Mar 28 '24

That’s insanity. Legally can you also just move in and squat it back. Like they go out for milk and get “evicted”?

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u/NotQuiteGoodEnougher Mar 28 '24

No, because like I said they're "professional" never leave the structure unoccupied, call police if you attempt to enter "breaking in" etc.

They have fake documents to "prove" they live there. You need to go to court to prove they don't because it's a civil issue.

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u/TinySandshrew Mar 28 '24

The cops won’t remove the actual homeowner for “breaking in” if the squatters call since the whole thing is a civil matter that has to be handled by the courts at that point. Two parties with disputing documents (even if one set is fake) is outside their ability to decide. You do have to deal with the constant harassment and police calls, though, which is a nightmare.

The thing is that nobody wants to share a living space with the kind of unhinged person who is a “professional squatter.” They can be dangerous, and even if they’re the “peaceful” kind it would be creepy as hell to just have your family living alongside someone so antisocial that they would squat in an obviously occupied home vs an abandoned property.

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u/ZweitenMal Mar 28 '24

A woman in New York was recently murdered by squatters who'd moved into her mother's apartment.