Foreclosure Property Tenant Issues

[Joe C.]

I bought a property off the court house steps site unseen. There are a woman and at least one child that live there. Said she has a lease but was not able to produce one to show me.

Long story short, I had an eviction service serve her with the 90 day notice a week ago. My REALTOR just drove by the property today and noticed newspapers over all the windows where nice plantation shutters were before.

Looks like they are taking things apart and possibly taking things with them to their new home.

What can I do? What are my options?

Joe

[Brian Burke]

Welcome to foreclosure auction investing, Joe!! Unfortunately, there is little that you can do. Sure, you could sue them for "waste" after you get possession and tally up the damage, but you are unlikely to ever collect on the judgment. I've never even tried.

One time I had a guy strip a house all the way to the sheet rock. He stole the doors, plumbing valves, light switches, you name it. The funny thing is, he borrowed a neighbors truck to haul stuff off. The neighbor made a great witness so I reported it to the sheriff. They arrested the guy for burglary, and he actually got convicted, served time, and was ordered to pay restitution. I got checks in the mail for years. I saw another case in southern CA where an ex-cop got convicted and served time for stripping his foreclosed house. These convictions are rare, though, and many law enforcement agencies don't want to pursue them even if pushed. I've had it happen to me many other times where I didn't get any recourse.

You can try to get them out earlier by offering cash for keys, but if I remember right from reading your earlier thread this didn't work for you.

I suspect that these people are actually the former owners and are lying to you about having a lease. If I were you, I'd have my attorney serve a 3-day against the former owner and "all occupants in possession", then file the unlawful detainer on day 4. If they actually are tenants, they would be forced to prove it and if they don't, you'll most likely get a judgment for possession. If they do prove up their tenancy, you've got the 90 day served already and that clock is ticking already.