There's a difference between true "squatters' rights" and what these people are doing. "Squatters' rights" is a colloquial term for the common law principle of adverse possession. Adverse possession allows a person to acquire title to a piece of real property after they have used it and treated it as their own for many years. The reason adverse possession exists (and has existed for hundreds of years) is that it's deemed to be in society's best interest that land is used productively. Therefore, a person who owns a piece of property but just ignores it for many years can lose that property to a person willing to put in the time, effort, and money to make productive use of it. People who "squat" (i.e., trespass) in temporarily empty houses are not exercising squatters' rights. They are taking advantage of the caution that police departments routinely exercise when ambiguity exists regarding potentially criminal behavior, and they are exploiting loopholes in landlord/tenant laws. By displaying a fraudulent lease, they create doubt in the minds of the police about whether they are just trespassing or actually have some legal right to be there. The police will almost always err on the side of caution in these circumstances because they don't want to be sued if they're wrong. With the police declining to act, the only way for the landlord to get their property back is through the eviction process. Unfortunately, the eviction laws were written to protect the due process rights of legitimate tenants, and are not designed to deal with situations like this. Therefore, these criminals are provided with due process protections that the legislatures that drafted the landlord/tenant laws likely never intended.
@@junglesuperstar9270 Nonetheless, that's how adverse possession works. I don't like it either. I consider it an outdated concept which should be abandoned. It may have been appropriate in the days when America was still expanding its frontiers, when property ownership was less clear, but I don't think it has any place in a 21st-century society where there are no more frontiers and there are very few issues regarding property ownership.
They aren’t squatters! They’re home invaders. How in the hell could they prove they’re squatters and not home invaders if they never make it to the hospital?
My mom's house is empty and for sale, settlement was to be last week. The police have been checking the property daily. Yesterday I informed the police I have given no one permission to be in the house and have granted no one a lease and to treat anyone found on the property as trespassing. They thanked me for the details.
That might be a good idea in general. Place a standing order with your local law enforcement that you are not leasing to anyone currently. I don't know if it would be enough to prevent squatting, but it's good evidence against them in any claims.
@@elizabethheyenga9277 Indeed, although I'd rather have an official notice set so that disputes can be more easily resolved. Some private business wouldn't be able to provide solid evidence to help you out in case a squatter slipped in there while someone wasn't looking. What you need most, I would think, would be solid proof of your intent, so that their claims of tenancy could be as easily disproven as possible.
You can put in a monitored home alarm system. If the alarm trips from a burglar, trespasser or squatter then a signal goes to the alarm company that is monitoring the alarm and they can immediately call the police or sheriff .
3:05 I want to make sure I understand this, because I've had problems with tenants in the past, and would like to make income this way again, but to be honest, I had some mysterious help getting that property sold, after it seemed apparent to me that I had been targeted. I have become much more risk-averse than I used to be...
I can't edit the original question I started, so I'll just continue to ask this way: Are you saying the only way besides leasing to a guy like this to perform a service such as this is to be bled by the tenant into personal bankruptcy, so that when you are forced financially to sell, the sheriff's can kick these people out? I need to know, because I think it came close to that with me before, and I would take a much different approach if I couldn't hire someone to help me (or if I was blacklisted, like I've been, because I KNOW without help all alone and surrounded by these obstructionist parasite criminals, it becomes too much quickly).
Our governor passed a law in fla. That cops can remove the squatters of your home or property, Thank you Governor.Starting in july 2024 Doesnt help me now squatter took $10,000 of personal property and sold it for his drug habit
Well not really. DeSatan signed a law that allows the property owner to be charged an hourly fee as a sheriff's deputy stands by to 'keep the peace' while the property owner changes the locks or removes squatter's personal property. THE COPS, ACTUALLY A SHERIFF'S DEPUTY, DOES NOT REMOVE SQUATTERS. Just one more cosplay law by a cosplay governor.
@@Qrayon Lol, give credit for another way for cops to get money from citizens beyond civil forfeiture and traffic tickets. The law DOES NOT remove squatters. It charges property owners hourly for a rent-a-deputy to stand around while the property owner changes locks or removes squatter's property. BFD
@@terirea7743 I haven't read the law, so I don't know the details. If what you said is the case, then that is a BFD. It's a lot better than what homeowners had before, when it would take months and months, plus court costs and attorneys fees to get the squatter out. With the new system as you describe it, it'll be a lot cheaper to pay the deputy's hourly fee, don't you think? With the new law, it'll be much easier to get the trespasser out, and much quicker.
@@QrayonI totally agree with you. It's a great baby step for property owners in Florida. I just dislike the misrepresentation of what the law really does. Squatters aren't being taken out. Law enforcement is still doing next to nothing.
Someone steals an automobile, the police will destroy it to get it back. Someone steals something as important as someone's home, they do nothing about it? Backwards.
My sister’s car was stolen and totaled and the police just took the teenager thief back home, no warnings, no fines, no arrests, not even handcuffs. The thief had broken into her neighbor’s home and stolen stuff the week before, the police also did nothing with that either. It seems like the laws are just to penalize law abiding citizens.
Not so. I remember a case where a woman was selling her real estate property and a squatter moved in. The idiot cops basically destroyed the house to remove the squatter because he had a warrant. The homeowner was not compensated for the destruction of the home - they drove a tank into it!
Beyond changing the locks it's important to get everything that belongs to the squatter out of the house. Then plead ignorance to knowing that there was ever a squatter there. Never call the police. Do it yourself. I speak first hand from knowing how a friend of mine did this in MA, another liberal state. No lawyers and no police.
Yes, just sign a new lease to a security guard or someone. No laws can get around a new resident. It's not questionable for a new lease to have new locks.
You are telling me with a straight face that there are places in the United States where Squatters have more rights to a property than the actual owner of that property?
@@FlashShelton Dude that is wrong on so many levels who on earth would pass such laws allowing this thinking this was a good thing in the first place? People work most of their lives to purchase their own property and someone can move in and occupy and call it their own and have more rights than the person who worked for it? The world today is truly doomed.... This pisses me off more than words can explain as someone who me and my wife sacrificed for nearly a decade and half just to pay off our home and for anyone who has to endure such a thing. Because this also means the owner would have to spend money just to remove these people legally at no fault of their own. My wife and I have been looking at a new houses and thinking of renting out this home we currently have paid off but, things like this as well as just bad tenants in general is why I'm already so reluctant to such an idea and this just furthers those fears.
@@Demonlord468 I agree but there are some simple ways to prevent squatters. Here is my petition please sign and share www.change.org/ChangeSquatterLaws and watch my Squatter Prevention Video. Thank you.
Yo everyone. This is why we have to watch who we vote for. Some states are “tenant friendly” others land lord friendly. We only own rentals in landlord based states. Places like Seattle, Portland and California are crazy liberal tenant states. Never have a non owner occ home in a state that is tenant right leaning.
Hell yeah I’d be there in my home I paid for. You’d better not be there! Law should be right by you to get them out and charge them ! Yes charge them. Not their home, where is their mortgage or lease? Show it now or be charged for trespassing ! Simple how bloody hard is that to figure out! Omg people wake up governments! Bull crap
I don't get it, the squatter busts in the back door, move in...then you call the police and they can't do anything? They literally broke in entering So if someone breaks the window in my car and puts all their belongings in it, I can't get it back? Hmm 🤔 such a bizarre law.
Thing is, if the even hint at being a renter, it suddenly becomes a civil mater (ie for the courts to decide), unless there are specific laws that allow police to interfere with a civil mater, the Old British Common law (extended by US laws during Manifest Destiny era) takes precedence
I am a real estate lawyer. I would normally advise an owner to give a squatter 5-day trespassor notice, and sue for unlawful detainer. But under my understanding of CA law, your approach would work. ⚖️👍
The problem with giving notice is the way the laws are written the lines are blurred between tenant and squatter. This works because squatters themselves don’t have rights without civil process. The definition of squatter by itself doesn’t automatically give rights as tenants. If they can be caught off the property they have no legal standing to get back in prior to civil order. The reason why homeowner can’t do this is because an owner isn’t presumed to be occupant. Until these laws change I will expose and help others. I’ve had many attourney’s, judges and law enforcement confirming and rooting my efforts. Thank you for watching and your comment.
@@FlashShelton Serious comprehensive reform of the law is difficult, because legislative bodies focus on "now" problems and usually come up with patchwork solutions. Some of the rare progress which occurs is result of carefully studied law or state constitutional reform proposed by legal experts or commissions. Extensive revision of California's Commercial laws came through adoption of a Universal Commercial Code proposed by legal experts. Also a very unwieldy 1870 state constitution got revised only because of recommendations from a constitutional revision commission. It will probably require a similar effort by experts to revise real estate law, which is a congolmeration of middle age rules that have been modified in patchwork fashion. ⚖️
I've had two situations of squatters in my rental properties. Like you said, if you proceed with civil action you've initiated giving them squatters rights. If though you re access the property and take re take residency they will choose to move out. The second one was harder as they were really sketchy and violent. This got handled really easy with $150 for a couple pipe hitting MFers that physically convinced them to get out and not come back. Sometimes violence is the answer
I guess it depends. I and my former sister just inherited 2 properties on the same street. She feels she was due both properties. While she has not squatted in my house, she has overridden the court and switched out the lock the court approve I install, all for me to replace it again. If she broke in again and stayed there and I moved in, chances are I’d be murdered. This is also a lesson, in the fact that locksmiths don’t ask questions. You ask them to remove a lock on a house, they’re not asking for ID. They’re just making money.
@@lonniebeal6032 agreed. I’m under the impression there’s no ID required, quite often or all the time. Because, when I had her lock replaced, the locksmith didn’t ask for ID from me either. An horrific policy, in consideration of laws and current events.
Flash, did you see the news story out of Queens, NY ? Homeowner arrested after changing locks on squatters. With news cameras rolling, they broke back into the home and got the owner arrested.
They have to be living there for over 5 years before they can start the process. If you go on vacation and come home to squatters that’s breaking and entering along with trespassing.
This is bound to happen a lot now that so many illegals are pouring over the borders. They'll all hear about this and homeowners will be f*kked. I only hope that the illegals find the most woke homeowners they can find.
Just be safe. No home is worth you being harmed. Keep up the great work. Letting people know and advocating to change the laws are very, very important. People, write and call about having strong laws in place to protect property owners. Squatters rights should be very short. NONE.
I'd go in and toss the place...look like I was Robbed...and I'd call the Police right there and then and Scream that I was being Robbed and as They were led out in handcuffs I'd mouth...Thanks for the furniture and stuff...lol!!!
If I own a home and someone moves in without my permission I would have no problem escorting them out one way or another the law and the courts have no say so on my own property
You wish. I just found out that squatters have rights even in Iowa; they get tenant's rights after a few days. If you do anything that a landlord can't do, then you can lose your house to the squatters.
So if a robber breaks into my house and I catch him, I can't call the police because he can say he lives there? It doesn't make any sense. If that's the case, anyone can just come in to steal from you and if you happen to be home, or just come back home while he is there, he can claim that he lives there and you need to leave.
A robber caught in the act is totally different. He can say whatever. He must show proof. You have your id. You can show family pictures around your home. You can show mail sent to this address. Can he do that?
@@kayc2579 look up the years for New York squatters laws-so yes really-I looked it up-not hard to do-any search engine will work-if your looking for facts
@@kayc2579 I looked up when New York City squatters laws were enacted-1810 through 1840-so yes really -you can look it up yourself-on any search engine-if your looking for facts
Flash I have watched your youtube episode when squatters moved into your mom's house , very impressed with how you handled the situation. No screaming or physical fights, you got it done without help from the police. This is a problem all over the United States. Thank you for helping people with this same issue you had to deal with.
I thought you handled that situation with your mom’s house very well. I noticed you never “asked” the squatter and granddaughter to remove their things, you just told them they had until midnight to remove their items or forfeit what remained in the house. Very to the point and effective.
Unfortunately, if you use bear spray inside your home, it will smell of bear spray for a while making it uninhabitable. Yeah, you solve one problem. But you create another.
One can should be more than enough. Of course it will take a while to get the house livable and if they run out and call the police you might be in trouble.
It's utterly ridiculous that other possessions such as vehicles, artwork, jewelry, etc. has more legal protection than a home. I.e. You can't steal a vehicle, use it or park it at your residence for some time, then claim adverse possession. 🤨
You guys I like what he's doing but there is an easier way to get rid of squatters and I've seen it work personally if your resident gets occupied by squatters you call 911 and you say 2911 there are people breaking and entering in my house cops will come raid the house arrest everybody in the house and get them out but do not mention the word squatter soon as you mention the word squatter they'll say it's a civil issue so remember 911 people are breaking and entering my house and make sure you say they have knives and weapons because they raid the house was SWAT and rest them and get them out and I've watched it happen already two or three times it works like a charm
Is it leased to you as "fully furnished?" If so, you could claim all the furniture they brought in. The owner should also include that any attachments or modifications (light fixtures, locks, etc) automatically become part of the property. That used to be standard on my rental agreements.
B&E and then claiming you are a renter. Most states renter is a tenant issue and therefore a civil mater for the courts, and the police can not investigate civil mater unless there are laws or court direction for them to do so. We need more laws to allow some investigation....
This law is a example of our government passing laws under the radar. This is why every citizen need to know what laws they are passing. What laws they are trying to pass, who has submitted the bill and who are supporting the bill and who is voting against the bill.
Most of these laws are either from British Common law or Manifest Destiny Era... Not exactly under the radar to "go west find unclaimed land and take it for yourself" was advertised greatly....
There are certain locks that even locksmiths cannot change because it's against the law. The locks that I am referring to are the ones that can be reprogrammed with a simple tool as well as a new key. In Mississippi, these types of locks cannot be replaced once installed.
@@smc130 Says whom? We have a very low cost of living here, and we do not have much - if any - of them liberals down here causing all kinds of grief. We have a good measure down here on how to live a peaceful life with little to no problems between racial groups. Even the police are more favorable here when compared to cops in other states. We have Juneteen celebrations - among other celebrations for black and African American communities. It's all good down here.
Even if you evict squatters illegally with their gear, once you regain possession of your property, the police will do nothing to force you to allow them back in. Once you get them out, they are out. They may scold the homeowner for illegally evicting them, like they did in my case during one of my Do It Yourself Evictions, then they leave and do nothing more about it. One of the cops said he had never seen a woman do such a thing on her own. First time for everything!
How do they get in to the home in the first place? If I go out, locking my doors behind me and I come back I get the police and charge them with breaking and entering!
You have a lease. Push the squatters out. They threaten to call police. Go ahead, i have a lease. They threaten to sue. You say "go ahead, but ill drag this out as long as possible". "Where will you live during the legal proceedings?"
Unless someone has either a deed to the property or a valid lease allowing them to be there, they are trespassing and should have no rights whatsoever. Thank God for Florida. Our politicians are idiots.
In the past, bad tennants would not pay rent, lie about it, say their rent was "free". People would be homeless, a home owner who is tired of the homeless guy, invite him in, then call the cops and lie to get him arrested and away from their neighborhood, but then also squatters would lie and say they are being set up. Anyway.... you have these people in the past who would evict legitimate tennants out onto the streets to freeze on cold nights... So bleedinghearts and joo bankers started working together to take rights from land owners.
Some states you just say 'i am a tenant' and it suddently becomes a civil mater (for the courts), while others allows the police to at least see there is a lease but not much further. Very state dependent
I never leave long enough for a squatter to move in. Besides, wouldn't they have had to break in before they could change the locks? By claiming they are squatters to the court system wouldn't they be admitting to a crime, breaking and entering?
Well I’ve seen it happen over a weekend. If their are no cameras and no alarm when they say the door was unlocked or that you let them in and you had a verbal agreement. These professional squatters can tie you up in court for months. Do you really want to take that chance? I didn’t and it’s why I devised and executed my plan. Thanks for watching and your comment.
In most states you cannot, you can however enlist a separate entity to do it for you using different methods of inspection rights. You have to contract them and however pay when the deed is done only after paying them, you can then pay a trusted tenant to stay there to keep them out. I had a lawmaker pay a squatter to steal my fathers home when he died.
Right on that's exactly what I would do and I'm not no brain surgeon or rocket scientist but if I move in there with them and become a problem for them I am sure that they will not like hanging out with my bipolar schizophrenic I have anger issues that scare the hell out of me
Michigan changed their laws 10 years ago. While I've yet to see any case law on it, as written, anything short of assault is fair game. This applies only to true squatters. Not to formerly legitimate tenants that have held over or stopped paying.
How come these homes are not equipped with home alarms? Once a break in occurs then the alarm will activate and the alarm company can immediately notify the police or sheriffs department….
One easy fix would be to have each state mandate that ALL leases be notarized by the tenant and the homeowner on the deed/title. And kept on the premises at all times. That way these squatters with fake leases have zero proof to support their scam. Then it's trespassing. Change the locks and law enforcement can remove them.
Adverse Possession applies to any squatter but not trespassers. Trespassers have no rights to your home. A squatter is someone who is no longer paying rent but is laying over, not leaving. A 3-day or 14-day, whatever, eviction notice must be served and then a court date for eviction can be applied for.
I had people in my house last year. Before the Floridaawa changed. I had to file and eviction and because the people aren't stupid the dragged it out. But they made 1 mistake halfway through. They decided to call code enforcement for what they believed was a illegal add on the building. No permits were pulled and they found that out. Problem for them is It didn't need a permit before permits were created. Basically they can't enforce something when there was no agency to enforce. I mean the house is 123 years old hello. But when they did that and i found out through the neighbors because the people ran their mouth i met the code enforcement officer at the property to tell her what was going on. I also informed her there was no utilities hooked up. I knew because I'm not stupid law says have to have running water. So i asked her to condemn ny house lol. She thought i was crazy but im not. She informed me if i had it condemned i would have to meet with her after either the windows were boarded or the water turned on. That's the easiest thing to fix in my opinion. Have to water turned on and call her to schedule a time i could show her the hose outside had water. No brainer. The people after the officer talked to her came out acting like a fool dancing and smiling thinking she got one over on me , u would get punished for the illegal add on and she could stay. The officer hadn't taken action yet but watching the fool she turned to me and asked are you sure. Yep!!!! I happily told her condemn ny house. She threw the sticker on and gad to go tell the people they had 30 minutes to collect what they wanted and had to leave. The police were in the way to make sure code enforcement had backup and they left! I wrote a letter to the judge explaining everything and the officer repots and an immediate eviction happened and criminal trespass signed so thet couldn't come back. Sometimes they think they are slicker than you are and it pays to look for loopholes yo help you. Btw ny house was removed from condemned status later that day because we threw the hurricane boards up in the house. The officer came back to meet me and aee the boards. It made me wish they had been vengeful before i had to file a case.
I don't know the California law, and I really don't care. Squatters would be given a chance to leave peacefully (about 10 seconds to get out). Then the ball bat is used, and they get the "advice" that if they try anything at all to "get even", I will find them no matter what it takes.
Hire yourself a "Squatters Squatter." What? I saw a guy that for a fee will simply squat in the home the squatters grabbed. They can't do anything with cops cause he's doing the same thing they are. He makes living there untenable and they leave. At which point he informs the property owner that they can now have THEIR property back. It costs 10% of what legal fees would cost and only requires a short time.
I made a mix of dog shit and smoked the squatters out...the stink was unbearable and they left..i pitched a tent up outside the front door and played my drums
Interesting advice. I was a victim in 2017. I'm counting on getting a reduced sentence for directing the authorities to their graves, should it happen again. I will not use the "s" word. The terms are "burglar" and "vandal".
Can a homeowner put down a family member as a tenant, like your mom did with you, just for precautionary measures? That's if the home is not occupied at the time.
I imagine that might work as long as the relative tenant can show proof of residence if it comes down to it. In my case I kept my mom in the dark so it couldn’t come back on her. I had lease and utilities in my name.
There's squatters they have no right to be on somebody else's property they pull this s*** on one of my properties I guarantee it'll be the last house they ever walk into .
Check out the story out of Queens, NY. Homeowner arrested after changing locks on squatters. With news cameras rolling, squatters broke down front door and got the owner arrested.
The fact that there is some BS called "squatters rights" anywhere is an absolute f-ing disgrace!
There's a difference between true "squatters' rights" and what these people are doing. "Squatters' rights" is a colloquial term for the common law principle of adverse possession. Adverse possession allows a person to acquire title to a piece of real property after they have used it and treated it as their own for many years. The reason adverse possession exists (and has existed for hundreds of years) is that it's deemed to be in society's best interest that land is used productively. Therefore, a person who owns a piece of property but just ignores it for many years can lose that property to a person willing to put in the time, effort, and money to make productive use of it.
People who "squat" (i.e., trespass) in temporarily empty houses are not exercising squatters' rights. They are taking advantage of the caution that police departments routinely exercise when ambiguity exists regarding potentially criminal behavior, and they are exploiting loopholes in landlord/tenant laws.
By displaying a fraudulent lease, they create doubt in the minds of the police about whether they are just trespassing or actually have some legal right to be there. The police will almost always err on the side of caution in these circumstances because they don't want to be sued if they're wrong.
With the police declining to act, the only way for the landlord to get their property back is through the eviction process. Unfortunately, the eviction laws were written to protect the due process rights of legitimate tenants, and are not designed to deal with situations like this. Therefore, these criminals are provided with due process protections that the legislatures that drafted the landlord/tenant laws likely never intended.
@@davidwilliams5407
You are literally talking nonsense . If somebody has been committing crimes for many years , it is still a crime .
@@junglesuperstar9270 Nonetheless, that's how adverse possession works. I don't like it either. I consider it an outdated concept which should be abandoned. It may have been appropriate in the days when America was still expanding its frontiers, when property ownership was less clear, but I don't think it has any place in a 21st-century society where there are no more frontiers and there are very few issues regarding property ownership.
@@davidwilliams5407 Americans living in Middle Ages and doing nothing is nothing new.
@@davidwilliams5407 BS!
They aren’t squatters! They’re home invaders. How in the hell could they prove they’re squatters and not home invaders if they never make it to the hospital?
My mom's house is empty and for sale, settlement was to be last week. The police have been checking the property daily. Yesterday I informed the police I have given no one permission to be in the house and have granted no one a lease and to treat anyone found on the property as trespassing. They thanked me for the details.
I want to work for flash! Franchise opportunities?
That might be a good idea in general. Place a standing order with your local law enforcement that you are not leasing to anyone currently. I don't know if it would be enough to prevent squatting, but it's good evidence against them in any claims.
@@BKPrice might be a business for someone checking on empty properties daily!
@@elizabethheyenga9277 Indeed, although I'd rather have an official notice set so that disputes can be more easily resolved. Some private business wouldn't be able to provide solid evidence to help you out in case a squatter slipped in there while someone wasn't looking. What you need most, I would think, would be solid proof of your intent, so that their claims of tenancy could be as easily disproven as possible.
You can put in a monitored home alarm system. If the alarm trips from a burglar, trespasser or squatter then a signal goes to the alarm company that is monitoring the alarm and they can immediately call the police or sheriff .
Squatters rights are BS. If a bank forecloses on you a sheriff comes and drags you out.
3:05 I want to make sure I understand this, because I've had problems with tenants in the past, and would like to make income this way again, but to be honest, I had some mysterious help getting that property sold, after it seemed apparent to me that I had been targeted. I have become much more risk-averse than I used to be...
I can't edit the original question I started, so I'll just continue to ask this way: Are you saying the only way besides leasing to a guy like this to perform a service such as this is to be bled by the tenant into personal bankruptcy, so that when you are forced financially to sell, the sheriff's can kick these people out? I need to know, because I think it came close to that with me before, and I would take a much different approach if I couldn't hire someone to help me (or if I was blacklisted, like I've been, because I KNOW without help all alone and surrounded by these obstructionist parasite criminals, it becomes too much quickly).
Our governor passed a law in fla. That cops can remove the squatters of your home or property, Thank you Governor.Starting in july 2024
Doesnt help me now squatter took $10,000 of personal property and sold it for his drug habit
Well not really. DeSatan signed a law that allows the property owner to be charged an hourly fee as a sheriff's deputy stands by to 'keep the peace' while the property owner changes the locks or removes squatter's personal property. THE COPS, ACTUALLY A SHERIFF'S DEPUTY, DOES NOT REMOVE SQUATTERS. Just one more cosplay law by a cosplay governor.
You must give credit to the Florida legislature. That is who passed the bill. DeSantis signed it into law. Bravo to all of them.
@@Qrayon Lol, give credit for another way for cops to get money from citizens beyond civil forfeiture and traffic tickets. The law DOES NOT remove squatters. It charges property owners hourly for a rent-a-deputy to stand around while the property owner changes locks or removes squatter's property. BFD
@@terirea7743 I haven't read the law, so I don't know the details. If what you said is the case, then that is a BFD. It's a lot better than what homeowners had before, when it would take months and months, plus court costs and attorneys fees to get the squatter out. With the new system as you describe it, it'll be a lot cheaper to pay the deputy's hourly fee, don't you think? With the new law, it'll be much easier to get the trespasser out, and much quicker.
@@QrayonI totally agree with you. It's a great baby step for property owners in Florida. I just dislike the misrepresentation of what the law really does. Squatters aren't being taken out. Law enforcement is still doing next to nothing.
Someone steals an automobile, the police will destroy it to get it back. Someone steals something as important as someone's home, they do nothing about it? Backwards.
My sister’s car was stolen and totaled and the police just took the teenager thief back home, no warnings, no fines, no arrests, not even handcuffs. The thief had broken into her neighbor’s home and stolen stuff the week before, the police also did nothing with that either.
It seems like the laws are just to penalize law abiding citizens.
Because it's cool to be in a TV news chase.
Not so. I remember a case where a woman was selling her real estate property and a squatter moved in. The idiot cops basically destroyed the house to remove the squatter because he had a warrant. The homeowner was not compensated for the destruction of the home - they drove a tank into it!
@terirea7743 They weren't after the person for squatting, sounds like.
If I find someone in my house, that is breaking and entering, and I will defend my property. That's the law. Intruder beware.
castle doctrine; "I feared for my life"
@@williewonka6694 if somebody broke into your home, you don't even have to say that. it's implied, wtf are they doing there?
They tried this ish on me in the middle of a remodel.
Didn’t work.
Great to hear!
As far as I’m concerned, squatters have two options, leave on your own or go out in a body bag! Period.
You have a gun and shovel. And keep your mouth shut.
If squatters refuse to leave you tell them fine, I will dig up another spot for you in the garden.
totally agree!
that's fine but you'll probably end up in jail for what it's worth. Big talk needs smart minds behind it
@@elizabethheyenga9277 you’re probably correct, so what do you recommend?
Yes I will take my house back by force.
I will, too.
Same.
Beyond changing the locks it's important to get everything that belongs to the squatter out of the house. Then plead ignorance to knowing that there was ever a squatter there. Never call the police. Do it yourself. I speak first hand from knowing how a friend of mine did this in MA, another liberal state. No lawyers and no police.
In the case of a lady in New York, the squatters called the police and they arrested the lady who owned the house.
@@edennis8578Understood. She didn't handle it right.
It takes forever for a judge to make a decision and get them out.Ridiculous!😢
Yes, just sign a new lease to a security guard or someone. No laws can get around a new resident.
It's not questionable for a new lease to have new locks.
You are a hero! God has given you this job to help so many.
Mans man handling business💪🏻
You are telling me with a straight face that there are places in the United States where Squatters have more rights to a property than the actual owner of that property?
Yes I’m not only telling you that people including myself have experienced it and many still are.
@@FlashShelton Dude that is wrong on so many levels who on earth would pass such laws allowing this thinking this was a good thing in the first place?
People work most of their lives to purchase their own property and someone can move in and occupy and call it their own and have more rights than the person who worked for it? The world today is truly doomed....
This pisses me off more than words can explain as someone who me and my wife sacrificed for nearly a decade and half just to pay off our home and for anyone who has to endure such a thing. Because this also means the owner would have to spend money just to remove these people legally at no fault of their own.
My wife and I have been looking at a new houses and thinking of renting out this home we currently have paid off but, things like this as well as just bad tenants in general is why I'm already so reluctant to such an idea and this just furthers those fears.
@@Demonlord468 I agree but there are some simple ways to prevent squatters. Here is my petition please sign and share www.change.org/ChangeSquatterLaws and watch my Squatter Prevention Video. Thank you.
Yo everyone. This is why we have to watch who we vote for. Some states are “tenant friendly” others land lord friendly. We only own rentals in landlord based states. Places like Seattle, Portland and California are crazy liberal tenant states. Never have a non owner occ home in a state that is tenant right leaning.
Hell yeah I’d be there in my home I paid for. You’d better not be there! Law should be right by you to get them out and charge them ! Yes charge them. Not their home, where is their mortgage or lease? Show it now or be charged for trespassing ! Simple how bloody hard is that to figure out! Omg people wake up governments! Bull crap
Don’t use the term squatter with the police. Make the call for breaking and entering.
I don't get it, the squatter busts in the back door, move in...then you call the police and they can't do anything? They literally broke in entering So if someone breaks the window in my car and puts all their belongings in it, I can't get it back? Hmm 🤔 such a bizarre law.
You’re right it should be the same as car theft.
Thing is, if the even hint at being a renter, it suddenly becomes a civil mater (ie for the courts to decide), unless there are specific laws that allow police to interfere with a civil mater, the Old British Common law (extended by US laws during Manifest Destiny era) takes precedence
I am a real estate lawyer. I would normally advise an owner to give a squatter 5-day trespassor notice, and sue for unlawful detainer. But under my understanding of CA law, your approach would work. ⚖️👍
The problem with giving notice is the way the laws are written the lines are blurred between tenant and squatter. This works because squatters themselves don’t have rights without civil process. The definition of squatter by itself doesn’t automatically give rights as tenants. If they can be caught off the property they have no legal standing to get back in prior to civil order. The reason why homeowner can’t do this is because an owner isn’t presumed to be occupant. Until these laws change I will expose and help others. I’ve had many attourney’s, judges and law enforcement confirming and rooting my efforts. Thank you for watching and your comment.
@@FlashShelton Serious comprehensive reform of the law is difficult, because legislative bodies focus on "now" problems and usually come up with patchwork solutions. Some of the rare progress which occurs is result of carefully studied law or state constitutional reform proposed by legal experts or commissions. Extensive revision of California's Commercial laws came through adoption of a Universal Commercial Code proposed by legal experts. Also a very unwieldy 1870 state constitution got revised only because of recommendations from a constitutional revision commission. It will probably require a similar effort by experts to revise real estate law, which is a congolmeration of middle age rules that have been modified in patchwork fashion. ⚖️
All bets are off when people ignore legalities.
I've had two situations of squatters in my rental properties.
Like you said, if you proceed with civil action you've initiated giving them squatters rights.
If though you re access the property and take re take residency they will choose to move out.
The second one was harder as they were really sketchy and violent. This got handled really easy with $150 for a couple pipe hitting MFers that physically convinced them to get out and not come back. Sometimes violence is the answer
I like your approach to a sketchy situation.
I guess it depends. I and my former sister just inherited 2 properties on the same street. She feels she was due both properties. While she has not squatted in my house, she has overridden the court and switched out the lock the court approve I install, all for me to replace it again. If she broke in again and stayed there and I moved in, chances are I’d be murdered.
This is also a lesson, in the fact that locksmiths don’t ask questions. You ask them to remove a lock on a house, they’re not asking for ID. They’re just making money.
protection is not violence, your defending yourself..............future statement if needed
@@privateprivate8366 Then technically the locksmith is breaking and entering.
@@lonniebeal6032 agreed. I’m under the impression there’s no ID required, quite often or all the time. Because, when I had her lock replaced, the locksmith didn’t ask for ID from me either. An horrific policy, in consideration of laws and current events.
Element of surprise makes sense and before the courts get involved.
Start your own reality show!!!! It’s gonna be fire!!!!!
Flash, did you see the news story out of Queens, NY ? Homeowner arrested after changing locks on squatters. With news cameras rolling, they broke back into the home and got the owner arrested.
New York, go figure.
That is a distortion of the law by wacky DAs of New York.
New York is worse than Venezuela. Everyone is leaving that lawless dump of lunatics.
@@carlbahre7246 same thing has been happening in CA, NJ, CO ... sigh
Zoo York
Turn off the water and electricity. Most people don't want to live somewhere without lights, power, or working toilets.
They have to be living there for over 5 years before they can start the process. If you go on vacation and come home to squatters that’s breaking and entering along with trespassing.
There's a Venezuelan on Tik Tok telling illegal aliens to move into houses and they can keep them.
This is bound to happen a lot now that so many illegals are pouring over the borders. They'll all hear about this and homeowners will be f*kked. I only hope that the illegals find the most woke homeowners they can find.
He finally got arrested.
@@ben-str and deported
Now he can squat in jail 😂
Sometimes you have to forget the laws and just let your foot do what it wants
Hahaha. Pure gold…..we had a squatter problem then threw a party things got a bit rowdy. Squatters didn’t want to stay. Love parties.
You are a hero on caliber with Indiana Jones!! Thanks for your dedication!
Aww thank you that was awesome to say. Thank you for watching.
Just be safe. No home is worth you being harmed. Keep up the great work. Letting people know and advocating to change the laws are very, very important. People, write and call about having strong laws in place to protect property owners. Squatters rights should be very short. NONE.
I'd go in and toss the place...look like I was Robbed...and I'd call the Police right there and then and Scream that I was being Robbed and as They were led out in handcuffs I'd mouth...Thanks for the furniture and stuff...lol!!!
And they get free legal representation.
I hope I never need your services, but I sure can now sleep better at night knowing you’re there to help if ever needed!! Thank you for your videos!
Thank you for your public service.
If I own a home and someone moves in without my permission I would have no problem escorting them out one way or another the law and the courts have no say so on my own property
You wish. I just found out that squatters have rights even in Iowa; they get tenant's rights after a few days. If you do anything that a landlord can't do, then you can lose your house to the squatters.
@@edennis8578 if someone is on my property illegally it's trespassing and at that point I could careless about squatters rights
Great ad for Ring Cameras ! You will know instantly 👍🏼
So if a robber breaks into my house and I catch him, I can't call the police because he can say he lives there? It doesn't make any sense. If that's the case, anyone can just come in to steal from you and if you happen to be home, or just come back home while he is there, he can claim that he lives there and you need to leave.
You break in and YOU BECOME THE SQUATTER… HOLD YOUR GROUND
only if he can speak, get it?
A robber caught in the act is totally different. He can say whatever. He must show proof. You have your id. You can show family pictures around your home. You can show mail sent to this address.
Can he do that?
yep, and then your tied up in court....its unreal!
@@ben-str Thing is most states do not allow police to even question if one side says they are a renter because it is a civil matter for the courts.
squatters rights in Ohio takes 20 years if no one complains. if caught inside someone's home it is 3 years for burglary.
Thanks for the advice but if someone inters my house without being invited I will assume they are there to do me harm. I am prepared for that.
Attitude is huge. Presence is too. Some of us would need a few friends along to give the same vibe 😄
I like the 'bring friends along' idea.
These laws are mostly from 1810 to 1840- needs to change
Not really.
@@kayc2579 look up the years for New York squatters laws-so yes really-I looked it up-not hard to do-any search engine will work-if your looking for facts
@@kayc2579 I looked up when New York City squatters laws were enacted-1810 through 1840-so yes really -you can look it up yourself-on any search engine-if your looking for facts
British common law, and I think last updated during the Manifest Destiny Era...
Swatters should not be allowed to enter any owned property. These lawmakers are asking for big problems from home owners.
Some shady realtors or "rental agents" give people fake leases and keep their deposit and money
@@JSees This, and 'it is for the courts' to decide a civil matter; unless the state has specific laws allowing police to interfere.
Flash I have watched your youtube episode when squatters moved into your mom's house , very impressed with how you handled the situation. No screaming or physical fights, you got it done without help from the police. This is a problem all over the United States. Thank you for helping people with this same issue you had to deal with.
I thought you handled that situation with your mom’s house very well. I noticed you never “asked” the squatter and granddaughter to remove their things, you just told them they had until midnight to remove their items or forfeit what remained in the house. Very to the point and effective.
Caught your interview on the Jensen program. Good work Flash.
That bear spray is pretty effective. Bout 3 or 4 cans will do.
Sounds excessive, but justified
Unfortunately, if you use bear spray inside your home, it will smell of bear spray for a while making it uninhabitable. Yeah, you solve one problem. But you create another.
One can should be more than enough. Of course it will take a while to get the house livable and if they run out and call the police you might be in trouble.
It's utterly ridiculous that other possessions such as vehicles, artwork, jewelry, etc. has more legal protection than a home. I.e. You can't steal a vehicle, use it or park it at your residence for some time, then claim adverse possession. 🤨
So what's the difference between break & enter and squatting?
One is a crime and the other is... extortion!
B&E is a crime the police are allowed to handle, while if you claim to be a renter it becomes civil (ie for the courts)
The main question is Which states are best to live in where there are NO Squatting rights??
This is absolutely insane!
They can break into your home but you cannot come into your home after they’ve broken in to it.
Flash, your the best!
You guys I like what he's doing but there is an easier way to get rid of squatters and I've seen it work personally if your resident gets occupied by squatters you call 911 and you say 2911 there are people breaking and entering in my house cops will come raid the house arrest everybody in the house and get them out but do not mention the word squatter soon as you mention the word squatter they'll say it's a civil issue so remember 911 people are breaking and entering my house and make sure you say they have knives and weapons because they raid the house was SWAT and rest them and get them out and I've watched it happen already two or three times it works like a charm
You have to wonder about morals of these people who think that they can just steal whatever they want
I do t care abt laws, if I want in my house, I have the papers and will be moving in
Is it leased to you as "fully furnished?" If so, you could claim all the furniture they brought in. The owner should also include that any attachments or modifications (light fixtures, locks, etc) automatically become part of the property. That used to be standard on my rental agreements.
Breaking and entering and you get rights...? Ugh 😖 Good idea to find out the rules of your principality to know how far we can go. Good video ❤
B&E and then claiming you are a renter. Most states renter is a tenant issue and therefore a civil mater for the courts, and the police can not investigate civil mater unless there are laws or court direction for them to do so. We need more laws to allow some investigation....
This law is a example of our government passing laws under the radar. This is why every citizen need to know what laws they are passing. What laws they are trying to pass, who has submitted the bill and who are supporting the bill and who is voting against the bill.
Most of these laws are either from British Common law or Manifest Destiny Era... Not exactly under the radar to "go west find unclaimed land and take it for yourself" was advertised greatly....
If the legal system won’t deal with this, once you’ve squatted in my home there is no law.
There are certain locks that even locksmiths cannot change because it's against the law. The locks that I am referring to are the ones that can be reprogrammed with a simple tool as well as a new key. In Mississippi, these types of locks cannot be replaced once installed.
That figures. Mississippi is one if not THE most undesirable state in which to live in these United States.
@@smc130 Says whom? We have a very low cost of living here, and we do not have much - if any - of them liberals down here causing all kinds of grief. We have a good measure down here on how to live a peaceful life with little to no problems between racial groups. Even the police are more favorable here when compared to cops in other states. We have Juneteen celebrations - among other celebrations for black and African American communities. It's all good down here.
Hats off to you! And thank you for what you do!
Even if you evict squatters illegally with their gear, once you regain possession of your property, the police will do nothing to force you to allow them back in. Once you get them out, they are out.
They may scold the homeowner for illegally evicting them, like they did in my case during one of my Do It Yourself Evictions, then they leave and do nothing more about it. One of the cops said he had never seen a woman do such a thing on her own.
First time for everything!
Id treat it like a home invasion when they come back and then call the cops
How do they get in to the home in the first place? If I go out, locking my doors behind me and I come back I get the police and charge them with breaking and entering!
You have a lease. Push the squatters out. They threaten to call police. Go ahead, i have a lease. They threaten to sue. You say "go ahead, but ill drag this out as long as possible". "Where will you live during the legal proceedings?"
An owner tried it and the squatters produced a fake lease and the cops arrested her for breaking and entering.
@andreaparke4899 she should have produced her own fake lease to trump theirs.
@@andreaparke4899 Owner of the property can't do this as it's self-help eviction. Has to be someone else that does it.
Your neighbors should know whoowns the house,that should be enough.
Yea, try to miss your mortgage payment a few times and see what happens.
Bad example. It takes months or years to be foreclosed
Unless someone has either a deed to the property or a valid lease allowing them to be there, they are trespassing and should have no rights whatsoever. Thank God for Florida. Our politicians are idiots.
Why a judge would order to treat them as tenants? I would like to learn how this could happen.
In the past, bad tennants would not pay rent, lie about it, say their rent was "free".
People would be homeless, a home owner who is tired of the homeless guy, invite him in, then call the cops and lie to get him arrested and away from their neighborhood, but then also squatters would lie and say they are being set up.
Anyway.... you have these people in the past who would evict legitimate tennants out onto the streets to freeze on cold nights...
So bleedinghearts and joo bankers started working together to take rights from land owners.
Look up your state laws. I just found out they can do this even in Iowa.
Judges have houses too go squat his place one day when he's at work
Some states you just say 'i am a tenant' and it suddently becomes a civil mater (for the courts), while others allows the police to at least see there is a lease but not much further. Very state dependent
I never leave long enough for a squatter to move in. Besides, wouldn't they have had to break in before they could change the locks? By claiming they are squatters to the court system wouldn't they be admitting to a crime, breaking and entering?
Well I’ve seen it happen over a weekend. If their are no cameras and no alarm when they say the door was unlocked or that you let them in and you had a verbal agreement. These professional squatters can tie you up in court for months. Do you really want to take that chance? I didn’t and it’s why I devised and executed my plan. Thanks for watching and your comment.
Isn’t this what license to carry is for???
So tenant, you, have more rights than Mom, homeowner?
@@lorettaroublick9767yes
@@lorettaroublick9767Yes. It's twisted, isn't it?
In most states you cannot, you can however enlist a separate entity to do it for you using different methods of inspection rights. You have to contract them and however pay when the deed is done only after paying them, you can then pay a trusted tenant to stay there to keep them out. I had a lawmaker pay a squatter to steal my fathers home when he died.
Roof removal usually gets them out pretty quickly
Right on that's exactly what I would do and I'm not no brain surgeon or rocket scientist but if I move in there with them and become a problem for them I am sure that they will not like hanging out with my bipolar schizophrenic I have anger issues that scare the hell out of me
We can figure all that out at my murder trial
Michigan changed their laws 10 years ago. While I've yet to see any case law on it, as written, anything short of assault is fair game. This applies only to true squatters. Not to formerly legitimate tenants that have held over or stopped paying.
Saw you on Fox and friends this morning, awesome!
How come these homes are not equipped with home alarms?
Once a break in occurs then the alarm will activate and the alarm company can immediately notify the police or sheriffs department….
That’s what I was thinking . We have a monitored alarm system.
funny how trespassing seems to be ok, but you go to the police station with a camera they try to kick you out
One easy fix would be to have each state mandate that ALL leases be notarized by the tenant and the homeowner on the deed/title. And kept on the premises at all times.
That way these squatters with fake leases have zero proof to support their scam. Then it's trespassing. Change the locks and law enforcement can remove them.
Brilliant! Thank you!
Pull the power meter late at night.
Squatters beware...
Adverse Possession applies to any squatter but not trespassers. Trespassers have no rights to your home. A squatter is someone who is no longer paying rent but is laying over, not leaving. A 3-day or 14-day, whatever, eviction notice must be served and then a court date for eviction can be applied for.
Yes, but in some states as long as you say 'i am a tenant', the police can not do anything more, even asking for the lease.....
Flash is an urban SEAL team.
Thanks I will take that.
Where does home invasion stop and squatters rights begin?
Just remember we have laws to protect the guilty
That's good. Thanks.
F the law....ITS YOUR HOME...TAKE IT BACK!
Thank you for what you do 👍🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
I had people in my house last year. Before the Floridaawa changed. I had to file and eviction and because the people aren't stupid the dragged it out. But they made 1 mistake halfway through. They decided to call code enforcement for what they believed was a illegal add on the building. No permits were pulled and they found that out. Problem for them is It didn't need a permit before permits were created. Basically they can't enforce something when there was no agency to enforce. I mean the house is 123 years old hello. But when they did that and i found out through the neighbors because the people ran their mouth i met the code enforcement officer at the property to tell her what was going on. I also informed her there was no utilities hooked up. I knew because I'm not stupid law says have to have running water. So i asked her to condemn ny house lol. She thought i was crazy but im not. She informed me if i had it condemned i would have to meet with her after either the windows were boarded or the water turned on. That's the easiest thing to fix in my opinion. Have to water turned on and call her to schedule a time i could show her the hose outside had water. No brainer. The people after the officer talked to her came out acting like a fool dancing and smiling thinking she got one over on me , u would get punished for the illegal add on and she could stay. The officer hadn't taken action yet but watching the fool she turned to me and asked are you sure. Yep!!!! I happily told her condemn ny house. She threw the sticker on and gad to go tell the people they had 30 minutes to collect what they wanted and had to leave. The police were in the way to make sure code enforcement had backup and they left! I wrote a letter to the judge explaining everything and the officer repots and an immediate eviction happened and criminal trespass signed so thet couldn't come back.
Sometimes they think they are slicker than you are and it pays to look for loopholes yo help you.
Btw ny house was removed from condemned status later that day because we threw the hurricane boards up in the house. The officer came back to meet me and aee the boards. It made me wish they had been vengeful before i had to file a case.
I don't know the California law, and I really don't care. Squatters would be given a chance to leave peacefully (about 10 seconds to get out). Then the ball bat is used, and they get the "advice" that if they try anything at all to "get even", I will find them no matter what it takes.
Hire yourself a "Squatters Squatter." What? I saw a guy that for a fee will simply squat in the home the squatters grabbed. They can't do anything with cops cause he's doing the same thing they are. He makes living there untenable and they leave. At which point he informs the property owner that they can now have THEIR property back. It costs 10% of what legal fees would cost and only requires a short time.
im not breaking in.
I'm replacing broken door locks .
Door locks won't stop me from entering my own home. And a squatters won't stand a chance once i enter my home.
I made a mix of dog shit and smoked the squatters out...the stink was unbearable and they left..i pitched a tent up outside the front door and played my drums
Interesting advice. I was a victim in 2017. I'm counting on getting a reduced sentence for directing the authorities to their graves, should it happen again. I will not use the "s" word. The terms are "burglar" and "vandal".
I WOULDN'T EVEN ASK THAT QUESTION! STUPID! DO I HAVE THE RIGHT TO BURN DOWN MY HOME IF SOMEONE TAKES IT?
Can a homeowner put down a family member as a tenant, like your mom did with you, just for precautionary measures? That's if the home is not occupied at the time.
I imagine that might work as long as the relative tenant can show proof of residence if it comes down to it. In my case I kept my mom in the dark so it couldn’t come back on her. I had lease and utilities in my name.
@@FlashShelton Smart of you! ...and you protected your mom in the process.
@@samsonian9468 thank you, yes always #1
There's squatters they have no right to be on somebody else's property they pull this s*** on one of my properties I guarantee it'll be the last house they ever walk into .
You mention working on studio lots. If you end up being one of Josh Brolin’s stunt doubles I will freak out.
This cant be real, I'm baffled
I'M BREAKING THE MF DOORS DOWN!!! THAT IS MYYYYYYYY HOUSE!!!!!
Unfortunately you get arrested.
@@FlashShelton I KNOW! But just listening to it just makes my blood boil!!
@@LisaR2392 I understand completely.
You’re a woman and you are breaking the door down? I doubt it.
Check out the story out of Queens, NY. Homeowner arrested after changing locks on squatters. With news cameras rolling, squatters broke down front door and got the owner arrested.