Published by FOX Business | June 23, 2023
Data shows 5.1 million U.S. households are behind on rent as of May 2023
Step through the doors of a house that’s just been vacated of squatters, and you might be shocked at the property’s condition.
Anchor Realty co-owner Walter Lapidus’ recently regained a Philadelphia-area home with multicolored graffiti walls, makeshift beds and trash covering the floors.
“This is how we found the place once the tenants were locked out by the sheriff,” Lapidus told FOX Business’ Jeff Flock on “Varney & Co.” Thursday.
After Lapidus’ tenant signed a year-and-a-half lease but only paid two months’ rent, the property manager claimed he’s been left with an expensive mess to clean up – as well as significant legal fees – after the squatters’ stay.
“What I think people fail to see is that, in the attempt to help people who are facing homelessness – which is an obviously very important mission – these costs, the costs of cleaning this up, are passed on to the folks who pay the rent on time, and that’s how we lose the affordability in housing,” Lapidus said.
According to Madison Ventures+ managing director Mitch Roschelle, real estate markets in cities like New York City, Philadelphia and Los Angeles could face an exacerbated squatter problem.
In New York, squatters are granted rights after just 30 days, which makes it harder to evict. It’s a similar story in Los Angeles where landlords are often forced to pay just to get rid of tenants who fail to pay. And in Philadelphia, even after a court orders a person out of a home, sheriffs might show up to evict, but end up leaving rather than cause a confrontation.
“The laws are written to protect the tenant, not the landlord,” Roschelle told Fox News Digital Thursday in reaction to Flock’s report. “The local laws that protect tenants at the expense of landlords have fueled this phenomenon because we’ve basically said forever it’s the landlord’s fault, not the tenant’s fault if the tenant can’t pay rent.”
He further warned landlords: “The law is not on your side.”
