Comments | poor_skills: Evicting Squatters

distillingwater in poor_skills

Evicting Squatters

Jan 08, 2010 09:19

I'm not sure if this is the right place, but you guys always have the answers for just about any question.

A friend of mine is renting a building that will serve the purpose of an all ages music venue. It is a large warehouse, with 3 apartments upstairs.

Here is the problem: there are 3 squatters living in the upstairs apartments.
The owner of the ( Read more... )

Comments 40

spiderbabyx January 8 2010, 17:14:06 UTC

Are the squatters the ones complaining about the music??? I would tell them to go fuck themselves. They're living there rent free, they can deal with the music put on by a paying renter.

patamon January 8 2010, 17:18:53 UTC

My thoughts exactly.

view_from_here January 8 2010, 17:53:14 UTC

Agreed

exoticbeachbum January 8 2010, 21:38:42 UTC

this, exactly. I was a little confused - people who are living there illegally and not paying rent are complaining? That's a little backwards.

Thread 6

admiral_chowder January 8 2010, 17:21:16 UTC

Why will the cops not kick the squatters out?

I would ask your friend to contact the owner and have HIM get the cops involved, perhaps under penalty of losing the contract (I'm not sure what legal issues would be involved in Canada/Ontario). They may not listen to your friend since he's just renting the warehouse and not the apartments. However, if the owner tells them that the squatters are there, are not paying rent, and are unwelcome on his property, that might be more effective.

ETA: If your friend is renting the entire building, he should still get the owner involve, and appeal any tickets issued to him, if possible. This is especially true if he has the necessary licenses to run his venue, and if no one but the squatters are complaining. Bottom line is, they need to be removed somehow. Best bet is probably to get the owner to have them removed on charges of trespassing, and for the apartments to be padlocked or similar.

blasphemusfish January 8 2010, 17:25:48 UTC

Yeahs I was going to mention relaying tickets to the owner too. "Hey man, nice warehouse, thanks for the surprise extras, here are my own surprise extras :D"

admiral_chowder January 8 2010, 17:29:18 UTC

Prexactly. If the owner is willing to let the squatters stay on his property, even though someone else is paying the rent for it? Then he can damn well pay any tickets caused by those squatters complaining to the cops!

Hopefully after just one of those he'll pick up the phone and get something done. But it's still upsetting that the cops aren't listening to the renting friend. I know when I had to get a restraining order on the guy downstairs (schizophrenic off his meds who kept trying to get into my apartment to kill me for 'practising black magic'), the cops didn't wait around for the OWNERS to call them because it wasn't my property for him to break into. :\

blasphemusfish January 8 2010, 17:30:31 UTC

Maybe they need a complaint from the actual owner, since the apartments are seperate from the main warehouse bit and the cops might need proof that he is renting the entire building.

Thread 6

arrien January 8 2010, 17:23:00 UTC

I don't understand why the cops can't do anything. it's trespassing!

fidgetspin January 8 2010, 17:56:00 UTC

Legally, it isn't. Squatting is considered a civil matter in which someone is occupying a space deemed abandoned. If the squatter has made improvements or put their own locks on the door(demonstrating restricted access) , for example, they are putting very valid steps in place to obtain ownership through adverse possession. Most places have laws pertaining to squatters, usually with a time limit between 5 and 15 years that they have to squat before making a play for ownership ( ... )

(The comment has been removed)

syrinx January 10 2010, 23:26:48 UTC

I hope he sued the person who told him it was his condo.

Thread 5

(The comment has been removed)

blasphemusfish January 8 2010, 17:26:19 UTC

And it should be backdated :D

kaelstra January 8 2010, 17:53:46 UTC

Wait, so people are illegally residing someplace, and complaining about the music?

And the cops won't remove them?

....I....what?

distillingwater January 10 2010, 14:01:04 UTC

the owner of a bar i frequent often was playing basket ball in the alley behind the bar at about 8pm one night a few summers ago. he got a noise complaint from the apartment building on the other side of the street.
he had to stop playing basketball in the alley or be faced with $800 in charges.
this complaint was made less than 1000 feet from the front doors of 3 of the biggest bars in my city.
people get away with complaining about everything here.