More and more, I’m noticing unwanted encounters with squatters. Lately, I’ve seen some infuriating stories on the news and YouTube of homeowners encountering squatters either in their home or rental property.

For those of you that don’t know, a squatter is defined as a person who enters an unoccupied property without permission with the intent of living there or occupying it for free. What nerve, right?!

Well according to lawdistrict.com, squatter’s rights were brought over from the British property laws and show relevance through Homestead laws which exist in most states. I’m thinking we need some updates to these laws!

Although we do have these laws that protect squatters, there are some ways in which you can deter them. Some of the ways in which you can deter squatters include:

1. Have a no trespassing sign on your property.
2. Monitor and maintain your home security system.
3. Regularly visit your property, check and empty the mail and make attempts to make it look lived in.
4. Get to know your neighbors so that they can let you or the police know if they see someone entering your house.
5. Hire a property management company to maintain the property.
   These are just a few tips that will hopefully deter any would be squatters.

In the event that you do encounter squatters on your property, be sure to contact the police right away! This will help you to have a report for legal proceedings. Additionally, you definitely want to contact an attorney as different states have different laws pertaining to evicting squatters. All in all, I hope that you never encounter this sort of issue. However, it would most certainly be in your favor to be prepared in the event you do.