Do squatters have more protections than legal homeowners?

hotairgypsy said

oh chuckaroo...let me throw a real world possibility...my parents have a former rental house they decided to not re-rent...so they are slowly working on it to get it ready for market to sell...very slow process..so they are currently paying for the utilities...well once they work is done they will probably turn off the utilities while it is vacant...So can a owner turn off the utilities in this case if a squatter slide in without them knowing but they were really turning them off cuz they got the work done???? hope that makes sense....another scenaro with them is they kept the gas and electric on for the winter to keep the heater on to prevent pipes freezing ...now that is warming up they could also turn off utilities since they are not needed for the temp issue.

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It’s really not a gotcha thing - constructive eviction is when the owner takes action ("extra-judicial action" meaning that it happens outside of the court process set up for eviction) for the purpose of making the property uninhabitable so that the tenants leave. Those activities you describe are normal property operation and if they turn the heat off every spring.

Another big point here is that 'squatting' requires time in which the property is occupied and the owner is unaware - due to the owner's inattention, it's not like someone can break in with a suitcase and instantly become squatters. In this day and age, it's pretty easy to monitor property from a distance. Yes, there's cost involved (likely requires electricity and internet) but it's certainly worth it compared to the cost and hassle of an eviction scenario. And the sooner the owner contests the possession (e.g. calls police about the break-in or trespass) the stronger their position is - and in most places, it's going to be very strong anyway because the law isn't favorable to squatting until the length of time has become substantial.