Is it a bad idea to buy a house with squatters

[Autumn Kim]

I recently started to have an interest in houses in Philadelphia and I noticed that there are some cheap houses there with squatters. 

Is the process hard to evict the squatters in Philly? How long and how much does it take to get rid of them?

Is there anyone who has experience dealing with squatters? 

[Wesley W.]

As long as you factor in the cost of their removal into your numbers.  Conservatively, I would plan on 12-18 months of lost rent (before rehab) and a signifcant amount of money/time to turn over the unit.  Have you been inside?  Good to have a qualified contractor walk it with you and assume 50% above whatever he tells you.  If you can't get inside, I would assume the economic vacacy above, and a full gut rehab.  The squatters institute a dynamic that you cannot accurately budget for, so I would be very, very conservative with any offers.  Low, low, low!  You are literally buying someone else's legal headache from which it may be difficult to see the bottom.  Based on geography alone, I am sure Philly has a very long, difficult and expensive process involved in removing these people.  Plan accordingly.