BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) — Unwanted tenants and alleged squatters can be difficult to remove in California, where tenant-friendly laws can leave property owners facing a lengthy legal process.
Attorney Dennis Beaver said property owners who suspect someone is unlawfully living in their home should not try to handle it themselves.
“If you suspect there’s a squatter in the property, don’t do a thing. You get a hold of an attorney who represents landlords because you don’t know what you’re doing. That way, you’re going to get yourself in trouble if you barge in there and get in a fight. These things happen,” Beaver said.
Beaver said landlords also cannot take matters into their own hands by shutting off utilities or services. He said landlords can’t turn off electricity or end phone services because doing so can give the tenant legal grounds for a lawsuit. Instead, the landlord must go through the eviction process.
Beaver said an attorney can also help property owners prevent or identify scams that may be used to justify someone’s presence in a home.
“And often a big scam, they create a fake lease. A fake mortgage. These people are often serial squatters. They go from one home to another to another,” he said.
A case in Bakersfield has highlighted the issue. About four months ago, a woman moved into a vacant home in the Stockdale Estates area. She has told Bakersfield police she has a legitimate lease, but neighbors dispute that claim.
The home is in probate after the homeowner died in August of last year. The woman living in the home now has said her experience has been a nightmare and that she has been harassed.
Neighbors spoke about the dispute but did not want to appear on camera, citing concerns for their safety. Bakersfield police have an investigator on the case.
“There are just too many loopholes that we have to go through. Yet they can stay there and live there for free and not have any repercussions,” a neighbor said.
The sister of the deceased homeowner is aware that the situation could take months for the courts to resolve.
“Letting a squatter into your property can be an absolute nightmare and can cost you thousands of dollars,” Beaver said.
Beaver said he does not think California laws will change.
“Unlike most every other state, California gives squatters incredible rights. And the longer the squatter stays in the property, they can actually wind up becoming tenants and, in the worst situation, owning the property over several years,” he said.
In these situations, police often cannot remove people accused of unlawfully living in a home because it is considered a civil matter, not a criminal one.