He called the police to have the person removed. The police came and surround the house. After a while the police never went in to the house to get the squatter out. It was because the police had called in to their station and were told that it was a domestic issue and they couldn’t do anything, so they left.

So my friend took actions in to his own hands and boarded up the house tight once the squatter was gone. My friend thought he had solved his problem.

A while later he noticed that the squatter had moved to his detached garage. So he proceed to board that up tightly as well. This ended up solving the problem.

I did a little research on this issue and I was intrigued by this grass roots site. This site has a handbook on how to squat and the squatter’s rights. I am not sure if it is really advocating squatting or this was written in fun. However, I have a feeling that the site is really trying to help people find a house to squat in. Even if this site is fake it appears to be well written and can you give you insight on how squatters think so you have more info in your battle to have them removed.

On some of the sites that I have researched indicate you must actually follow a procedure to get them removed. Unless you find the squatter right away (really just a trespasser) then the police have the power to remove a trespasser but not a squatter.

If the squatter has been there awhile it appears you have to get a county court eviction order. Strange that you have to evict someone that never paid you a dime.

Apparently squatters actually have rights. There is some interesting reading here that says if the squatter stays long enough and does so openly, that they can actually own it. This sounds very odd to me.

You can even get a “squatter” as an unauthorized resident that moves in to the property and doesn’t move out when the authorized resident does (i.e. girlfriend moves in to a home, has a fight with boyfriend, and boyfriend moves out).

Post from: Dave Dugdale RentVine.com

How do I get a squatter out?

 When looking for a tenant screening service you really need to pick a trustworthy one, because if you think about it you are handing over sensitive information about your future tenant, if that info is abused (sold to scammers) it could leave your company responsible for misuse of that information. Kind of ironic isn’t that trying to verify a tenant can have the opposite effect.

Check with the BBB and the local NARPM organization or the local apartment association.

Some screening companies charge $10 or less for a credit report. And if you are in the state of Colorado you can go online to COCourts at next to nothing. From their site it appears to be $6 per search.

The turn around time for most services are about 20 to 30 minutes.

Also, screening services offer different types of services – you can have credit reports, eviction reports, criminal reports, employment verification, rental verification, calling of references, and others. Some of this must be sent to the agency directly or it can be pulled from your computer dependent on the services you want/need and those offered.

Many screening companies though require to be shown that you have a reason for requesting the information so be prepared to show a copy of the deed and an application. They are resellers and must ensure that the reports are being used for the justifiable purposes.

Post from: Dave Dugdale RentVine.com

I’m a first time landlord, can you recommend a cheap tenant screening company?

This gives me the impression that this association understands the problem that a few bad property managers can give the whole industry a bad name.

If you are trying to figure out if your property will be in better hands with a property manager than your own, consider the following:

• How many properties do you have? If you just have one and it is in good shape and you have the time to maintain it yourself then managing it yourself is the best approach for saving you money.
• Does your day job have you traveling a lot? If so, then showing your property might be hard to do while you are out of town. In this case you might consider a property manager.
• Are you ok with getting a call in the middle of the night from a tenant that tells you the furnace has gone out and it is freezing in the house? If not you might consider either a property manager or have a good list of service professionals you can call on.
• Don’t have an idea what rent to charge? Property managers typically have a very good idea of the rental market and can not only price your rent appropriately, but they can set a budget of expenses and income to set the rent to make a profit. They can also give you reports on how well your investment is going.
• Are you ok with evicting someone or an entire family out on the street in the middle of the winter? Besides keeping track of the tenant rental payments, property managers typically understand rental law pretty well and know how to properly evict someone.

Do you feel confident that you can pick a good property manager? Property managers wear many hats, picking one that is pretty good at all the tasks required and is honest and trustworthy might take some time.

Personality of the property manager is important when figuring out which one to go this. Not everyone gets along with others, make sure you pick one where you have a good relationship.

Post from: Dave Dugdale RentVine.com

Should I use a property manager?