What do you do when someone is unlawfully residing in your home, but you can’t just kick them out?
If you’re having trouble thinking of an answer, maybe take a page out of this man’s book.
Flash Shelton, founder of United Handyman Association, had to get clever when dealing with squatters.
His father had passed away, and his wife, Shelton’s mother, wanted to sell the home.
It should have been an easy process with paperwork and some legal supervision, but they hit a bump in the road.
Well, it was less of a bump and more of a very obnoxious roadblock.
Squatters had helped themselves to the living space, and getting them out wouldn’t be so straightforward.
When it comes to removing squatters, the law is a bit complicated. You can’t just call the police and have them escorted out like what a club bouncer would do.
There’s a legal process that a homeowner has to follow. It largely involves getting legal evidence that the people are squatting, and that’s what Shelton had to do.
It may sound strange that squatters have rights in the first place, but there is a fair reason for this.
You may run into a situation where you are the rightful owner of someplace, but folks will try and threaten your claim to it.
The law says that if you’re been residing on a property for long enough, you are technically a legal resident of it.
This makes sure that rightful homeowners aren’t removed from their homes without legal due process, even if they’re unable to find their deeds or legal documents.
For instance, if your dad passes away and leaves you and the home behind, you might not be able to find the deed to the house. If someone tries to force you out, squatter’s rights would be one way you could legally remain a resident of the home – even if you misplaced the deed to the home.
But this law is a double-edged sword, as squatters can exploit the wording to try and lay claim to a home.
Shelton had a plan: to use squatter’s rights against them.
He had a method in mind to prove they’re squatting, and eventually get them out.
First, he had his mother notarize a lease so he had legal right to do so.
He drove to the home before the squatters showed up.
“I packed up my jeep, drove up there and paced out the joint around 4 a.m. I waited. About 8:00, 8:30 in the morning, three cars pulled out of the driveway and I made entrance to the house. I put up cameras, waited for them to come back,”
When they came back, they saw Shelton inside the home. He beat them at their own game and had cameras set up.
He locked the doors and jokingly encouraged them to retrieve the furniture they had set up inside.
The only way they could do that was to break in while the cameras were on them, which Shelton could present as legal evidence against them.
It worked splendidly. He gave them a day to get everything out of the house and leave, which they did.
Talk about fighting fire with fire, eh?
Listen to Shelton explain how he did it below. If you liked this article, please give it a share as well!
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