They might even come out and tell the gardai that you do indeed own the house too when the gardai ask you to prove you own the house (making the huge assumption that the gardai wouldnt be able to find that out in seconds anyway )
Professional squatter scams
- Thread starter jman0war
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You dont need to convince the RTB of anything. They have zero input here.
It makes a huge difference whether -
- people have broken in and are squatting, and you have video or other evidence of them breaking in; or
- people have, in all innocence, entered into what they think is a genuine letting arrangement, and are living in the property in good faith on the basis of that arrangement.
We've kind of glided between these to cases in this discussion, without alwasy being clear as to which one we are considering.
In the former case, the guards will probably be willing to arrest the squatters, or at least the risk that they will do so may cause the squatters to leave.
In the latter case, there's no grounds for arresting the occupiers; they haven't committed any offence. And the guards won't assist in forcibly evicting them without, at the very least, an eviction order from a court. But the guards' presence may help you to negotiate the departure of the occupiers.
- people have broken in and are squatting, and you have video or other evidence of them breaking in; or
- people have, in all innocence, entered into what they think is a genuine letting arrangement, and are living in the property in good faith on the basis of that arrangement.
We've kind of glided between these to cases in this discussion, without alwasy being clear as to which one we are considering.
In the former case, the guards will probably be willing to arrest the squatters, or at least the risk that they will do so may cause the squatters to leave.
In the latter case, there's no grounds for arresting the occupiers; they haven't committed any offence. And the guards won't assist in forcibly evicting them without, at the very least, an eviction order from a court. But the guards' presence may help you to negotiate the departure of the occupiers.
Guys it has happened here and there was a thread on it:
94 yr old man goes into care and "students" take over the house.
secretireland.ie
Not really sure how long the "students" took possession, possibly a couple years.
Guaranteed this happens more frequently.
Indo article "Student squatters in 94-year-old man’s Dublin home ‘clearly a symptom of housing crisis’"
This topic from the Indo today has been in the news before, however I couldn't find a post about it on askaboutmoney. It can be hard enough getting legally registered tenants out but it seems that a High Court case is needed even to get squatters out, and (my assumption) the legal costs will be...
www.askaboutmoney.com
94 yr old man goes into care and "students" take over the house.
Man (94) seeks court order to remove squatters who have moved into house - Secret Ireland
Imagine returning to your childhood home after years away, only to find strangers living inside—rifling through your family’s
secretireland.ie
Guaranteed this happens more frequently.
Well, this casts light on a couple of questions we have discussed. First, the RTB did not get involved (but the squatters in this case didn't claim to have a lease). Secondly, the guards did not turn up and simply arrest or evict the squatters.
I can't read the Indo article, which is paywalled, but I see nothing in the blogpost to suggest that the students were in possession for "possibly a couple of years". They told the neighbours that they had taken possession but, by the time they did so, the owner's family were already aware, and had alerted the owner.
I can't read the Indo article, which is paywalled, but I see nothing in the blogpost to suggest that the students were in possession for "possibly a couple of years". They told the neighbours that they had taken possession but, by the time they did so, the owner's family were already aware, and had alerted the owner.
I got the impression the owner did not turn up either.
I know.
Of course the RTB won't turn up along with the guards and try to sort things out.
But the squatters could contact the RTB themselves claiming to be unregistered tenants who the landlord is trying to illegally evict- there is a Report Your Landlord form precisely for that. The RTB would have to get involved then once the tenants report the "landlord" and lodge a dispute.
Squatters in the know would be fully aware that if they can get their case taken on by the RTB, they'll have a couple of years tenancy in the place.
Of course, the owner, based on previous posts, could go to the High Court separately.
Is squatting a matter for the RTB? Of course it isn't, but the squatters would be able to get the RTB involved by claiming to be unregistered tenants who are being illegally evicted. That might suit them as people are becoming increasingly aware that you can mess the landlord around for a couple of years via the RTB.
AGS rarely witness crimes of burglary, assault, murder but do attend the scene of reported crimes, make arrests where evidence exists etc.
Yes, but they do need evidence. In the scenario we are discussing here they have no evidence.
Only if they can also keep it out of the courts.
You are right. A landlord who has legal advice will head to the courts. If he has to go to the High Court, that will be a very expensive route, but it will get rid of the squatters.
A landlord who doesn't get legal advice may believe it is the RTB who deal with these matters. He'll be tied up there for a couple of years while his 'tenants' get a very sympathetic hearing.
Agreed, but it could well happen.
I lurk on a couple of the landlords' Facebook groups and the snarls people get themselves involved in when a bit of thought or a bit of advice would have meant the problem never happened at all.
Also, again based on the Facebook groups, the number of people who must be signing up to post March tenancies without any real understanding of the implications and what they are getting themselves involved in.
I think we on here tend to get advice if a problem arises, but not everyone does or they are a long way down the wrong track before they think about getting someone who knows what they are talking about involved.
With the ownership of property comes, well, the responsibilities of property ownership. If a dispute is shunted off to the RTB because the owner doesn't know, and doesn't bother to find out, that it's not a matter for the RTB, the fundamental problem that needs fixing is not the RTB, or the fact that trespass is not a crime, or the unwillingness of the guards to evict squatters, or any of the other issues that have been raised in this thread.
I could certainly see a situation where an owner who isn't familiar with legal issues would think that the RTB has jurisdiction here because they generally do when it comes to landlord and tenant issues.
The RTB gets involved, it looks like what is meat and drink to them, an attempted illegal eviction by an unregistered landlord. Because the RTB have involved themselves, it never strikes the landlord to ask is this really an RTB issue at all.
Brendan Burgess
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I think that this has been thrashed out fully at this stage.
Feel free to start a new thread when you have an actual first hand case of a squatter in your home or your residential investment or a court report of same.
Brendan
Feel free to start a new thread when you have an actual first hand case of a squatter in your home or your residential investment or a court report of same.
Brendan
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