As if our communities hadn’t suffered enough during this long mortgage crisis, we are just now starting to come to grips with the reality that our neighbors may not be who we thought they were.

I’m not talking aliens out of a M. Night Shyamalan or Steven Spielberg movie.  I’m talking squatters.  Squatters are occupants of properties which do not have a record ownership interest in the property, a valid lease nor are they even permitted to be on the property by the owner.  Usually, squatters have scoped out a habitable property, abandoned by the lawful owner after the owner has defaulted on the mortgage, and they move in and set up house.  They are usually able to get the utilities turned on by simply claiming to have a lease or showing a fake lease to the utility company and paying a nominal deposit.  So long as the lawful owner’s lender delays its mortgage foreclosure, squatters will occupy the property.  And rarely do owners who have abandoned their former homes care who or what happens to the property.

Once the foreclosure is complete, the squatters very likely have some leverage with the foreclosing lender under the claimed lease.  Banks do little investigation into the validity of any lease, being more interested in clearing the property and beginning the rehabilitation and resale process.  Squatters can use the lender’s desire to clear the house quickly as leverage to receive relocation benefits from the lender to move elsewhere.  Squatters might use these benefits to move into a traditional leasing arrangement or move on to the next abandoned home.

Although Florida law provides for squatters to seek via legal means ownership to the property (the process is called adverse possession), the process is difficult and requires undisturbed possession and payment of taxes for a period of seven years.  As a result, it’s rare that a squatter would stay long enough to meet the legal requirements.

Unfortunately, there is an impact to our communities.  Some squatters bring with them legal problems.  We assume that most squatters are simply folks looking for a roof over their heads for themselves and their family.  That may, sadly, be true for a great number of squatters.  For others, they may be looking for a place to ‘set up shop.’  And by that phrase, we mean they could be running a meth lab, a flop house for prostitution or drug use, or be a distribution point for illegal drugs. 

The rights of a non-owning community association are usually limited.  Not being the owner, the association has few means to eject a squatter.  One option is if the association has made a rent demand under section 718.116(11)(a) and 720.3085(8)(a) and the squatters fail to pay the demands – assuming they stated they reside under color of a lease – then the association may be able to evict the squatters. Alternately, the association can proceed with a lien foreclosure action and if the association takes title following a judicial sale, the association can evict the squatters.  If abandoned or leased and delinquent properties are a significant problem in the community, then seeking the appointment of a receiver of rents may be a more practical and less financially difficult avenue for the association to consider.  Finally, the association may choose to actively defend the mortgage foreclosure – pushing the lender and the court to move the lender’s foreclosure action forward as quickly as the courts allow – and thus making the home and the squatters the lender’s issue more quickly.

In cases where the squatters have infested the home and are using it for illegal activities, the best options may be for the association to actively pursue one or all of the methods noted above involving collections efforts as well as becoming – as safely as can be done – additional eyes and ears for local law enforcement.  But at all times you should always be absolutely certain that you are not harassing folks unfairly and unjustly – it is possible that the family living in the home has a lawful right to be there and may just happen to have night-shifts at work.  If law enforcement determines further investigation is warranted, then allow the police forces to do their work and take care of the problem.