A Philadelphia homeowner says he had to pay a squatter who changed the locks and left the property a mess $1,200 to leave after city officials refused to intervene.
Chris Harte bought a house in northwest Philadelphia, renovated it and tried to sell it in late 2023.
But on Dec. 8, her real estate agent received a call from a neighbor who reported hearing commotion coming from the home the night before, Fox News reported.
The neighbor decided to take a look, and saw people moving into homes and taking down “for sale” signs.
Harte then decided to call the police, who told him someone on the premises was trying to change the house’s keys. But they said because the squatters claimed they were renting out the property, there was nothing they could do.
Frustrated, Harte, his real estate agent and a locksmith met the police at the house the next day.
“I have all my paperwork, purchase and sale agreement, homeowner’s insurance, deed to the house, everything on me,” Harte told Fox News Digital.
“They said it didn’t matter.”
Chris Harte says he had to pay a squatter $1,200 to vacate his northwest Philadelphia home. Fox News
He claims police told him that squatters have rights, and to evict them, Harte would have to file a landlord-tenant complaint — which costs more than $300 and can take up to a year for a judge to order the squatters out.
“Squatters’ rights – it’s like an oxymoron,” Harte said.
“If I go into a store and steal a bottle of water, they see me on camera, they’ll take me to jail. But someone can break into my house, change the lock and now they have rights?”
Bob Cervone, the real estate agent who sold the house, said the issue has become a common problem in the City of Brotherly Love.
“The police told us they get three to four calls a day like this,” he told Fox News.
“I’ve definitely heard this happen from other agents, from landlords. But it was my first experience with it.”
Police who arrived at the scene on December 8 said people at the premises were trying to change the house’s keys. Chris Harte via Fox News
The Post has reached out to the Philadelphia Police Department for comment.
In a statement to Fox News, officials would only confirm Harte was notified of the squatter’s rights issue and that they had not made an arrest.
Eventually, Cervone said, the squatters told him they found another place to live — but they would only vacate the premises if Harte gave them $2,000.
Following some negotiation, Harte was able to get them to settle on the $1,200 payment.
When he was finally able to get back in, Harte said the house was “very dirty” with “rubbish everywhere” but fortunately there was no damage. Chris Harte via Fox News
When he was finally able to get back in, Harte said the house was “very dirty” with “rubbish everywhere” but fortunately there was no damage.
He then spent almost $600 more to hire a cleaning company and a locksmith.
“I didn’t feel at peace after that,” said Harte, who was finally able to sell the house last week.
“I had to keep driving there like every other day just to make sure no one broke in.”
Harte now spoke out against liberal politicians who allowed squatters to have rights.
Bob Cervone, the real estate agent who sold the house, said the issue has become a common problem in the City of Brotherly Love. Michael Bogner – stock.adobe.com
“It’s completely ridiculous,” he said. “They don’t help investors like me who want to improve the city, want to buy this house and then fix it up and you know, make the city a safer and better looking area.”
He added that he did not identify any political party, but noted that Philadelphia is a city run by Democrats and said it seems “pretty clear” that there is a correlation between leadership and crime across the country.
“We need different politicians,” he said.
“I think their policies are very bad, and they are ruining many cities across America. And Philadelphia is one of them.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
