Our dream house has been stolen!! (St. Petersburg, Orlando: rentals, to buy, closing)

[Momma_bear]

Originally Posted by 58robbo

are these squatters any worse than strategic defaulters who sit in the home until they're evicted?

IMO there is a huge difference between simply waiting for someone to throw you out of a house and stealing that house from someone. People who file false quit claims are stealing homes from the owners by filing fraudulent paperwork in court. Maybe in your book they are no worse, but in my book there is a rather large difference.

[58robbo]

Originally Posted by Momma_bear

IMO there is a huge difference between simply waiting for someone to throw you out of a house and stealing that house from someone. People who file false quit claims are stealing homes from the owners by filing fraudulent paperwork in court. Maybe in your book they are no worse, but in my book there is a rather large difference.

i agree with you on the paperwork thing but i believe that the squatting problem was a monster created by the banks and the govt. i've said it a few times, the banks did not make these homes available at a price the market could afford. this has led to a gargantuan overhang in vacant inventory which is destroying some communities. to add to all these empty homes rotting away, you have desperate homeless people. it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that soon they're going to start gaming the system. i would hope that this type of action would force banks hands a bit to be a little more proactive in offloading some places. a 3 month wait for an answer on a shortsale ain't exactly proactive!

[Momma_bear]

Originally Posted by 58robbo

i agree with you on the paperwork thing but i believe that the squatting problem was a monster created by the banks and the govt. i've said it a few times, the banks did not make these homes available at a price the market could afford. this has led to a gargantuan overhang in vacant inventory which is destroying some communities. to add to all these empty homes rotting away, you have desperate homeless people. it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that soon they're going to start gaming the system. i would hope that this type of action would force banks hands a bit to be a little more proactive in offloading some places. a 3 month wait for an answer on a shortsale ain't exactly proactive!

I was in Plantation, FL today (my kids go to school there) and there are not hoards of angry homeless people and entire uninhabited neighborhoods there. That may be the case in SOME places but not in Plantation, which is quite lovely and pretty upscale.

[stars99]

I'm sorry to the OP for your predicament.

Is this situation the same as "house theft", which I've read about?

Does anyone here know if there's a way to protect yourself before it happens to you?

[phodg2]

Originally Posted by OrlandoRE_Miracle

I'm sorry to the OP for your predicament.

Is this situation the same as "house theft", which I've read about?

Does anyone here know if there's a way to protect yourself before it happens to you?

Nothing can be done to prevent it.

Once you have a quit claim deed on your property (that was not filed by you), you can file a Quiet Title. This is a lawsuit filed to establish ownership of the property. In our case, the bank would seek a court order that prevents these people from making any subsequent claim to the property.

BTW, our story was picked up by WSVN - Channel 7 and will soon be on the air .

[Momma_bear]

Originally Posted by phodg2

Nothing can be done to prevent it.

Once you have a quit claim deed on your property (that was not filed by you), you can file a Quiet Title. This is a lawsuit filed to establish ownership of the property. In our case, the bank would seek a court order that prevents these people from making any subsequent claim to the property.

BTW, our story was picked up by WSVN - Channel 7 and will soon be on the air .

Do you know when it will air?

[stars99]

Originally Posted by phodg2

Nothing can be done to prevent it.

Once you have a quit claim deed on your property (that was not filed by you), you can file a Quiet Title. This is a lawsuit filed to establish ownership of the property. In our case, the bank would seek a court order that prevents these people from making any subsequent claim to the property.

BTW, our story was picked up by WSVN - Channel 7 and will soon be on the air .

It seems like the best thing to do is to check the public records on a regular basis to see if someone files a quitclaim or lien on your property. I did some research and found out my county doesn't even check ID to file a quitclaim--they just need a notarized, signed document. Pretty scary!

Your situation sounds a little bit different because technically you didn't own the house yet when this happened.

[stars99]

Originally Posted by Momma_bear

I was in Plantation, FL today (my kids go to school there) and there are not hoards of angry homeless people and entire uninhabited neighborhoods there. That may be the case in SOME places but not in Plantation, which is quite lovely and pretty upscale.

MommaBear, this isn't a case of homeless squatters--it's identity thieves.

[phodg2]

Originally Posted by Momma_bear

Do you know when it will air?

They said as early as next week but no later than a month.

They are going to interview everyone involved including the creep who claims the house is his

There is a little glimpse of hope for us, the City of Plantation just took the water off in the house. The renters tried to have the water turned on in their name and the city contacted the listing realtor (the water bill is in his name) to have him authorize the change and he told them everything.

One of the neighbors sent me a text verifying that the city came by and the water was turned off and the water meter was taken.

[♥♥PRINC3Ss♥♥]

Originally Posted by phodg2

They said as early as next week but no later than a month.

They are going to interview everyone involved including the creep who claims the house is his

There is a little glimpse of hope for us, the City of Plantation just took the water off in the house. The renters tried to have the water turned on in their name and the city contacted the listing realtor (the water bill is in his name) to have him authorize the change and he told them everything.

One of the neighbors sent me a text verifying that the city came by and the water was turned off and the water meter was taken.

Unbelievable. I don't think this creep will have the nerve to show his face on TV. Hope he ends up in jail for fraud.