When you spend millions of dollars buying your dream home, you naturally anticipate the freedom to live in it. Yet, the gap between expectation and reality can be startlingly wide.
Meet Susana and Joseph Landa, who bought their $2 million dream house in the New York City suburb of Douglaston, Queens in October 2023, only to discover a squatter within its walls.
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According to New York state law, squatters are “classified as tenants and receive temporary rights as such” after occupying a property for 30 days.
The Landas’ predicament quickly made headlines and captured widespread attention, with several media outlets telling their story.
Dr. Ben Carson, the former U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, also weighed in on the situation.
Speaking on Fox Business, he expressed his disbelief: “We’ve kind of lost our minds,” he remarked. “Squatter’s rights? You’ve got to be kidding me. Squatters don’t have any rights. They have no right to be in your house. What are they going to have next? Trespasser’s rights? That makes no sense whatsoever.”
While Carson swiftly dismissed the rationale behind squatter’s rights, the Landas have found themselves entrenched in a long battle.
‘A total nightmare’
The squatter in question is Brett Flores. According to ABC 7, Flores was hired by the former owner of the house as his caretaker until he passed away in January 2023. Flores, who was paid $3,000 a week for his services, claims that he received a “license” from the former owner to remain in the house.
New York State law dictates that if an owner wants to reclaim property from a squatter after 30 days, they must prove a right to the property and proceed with legal eviction proceedings.
The Landas are taking Flores to landlord-tenant court to evict him. But it’s been a long process. ABC 7 reported that the couple already had five hearings in civil court but the process has been repeatedly delayed.
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“Long story short, he is still there,” Susana lamented.
In the meantime, the Landas bear the financial burden of the house, including thousands of dollars in utilities.
Joseph, perplexed by the ordeal, questions the justification of such rights, “If you have no lease and you’re not paying rent, what is you right?”
Overwhelmed by frustration, he labeled the situation “a total nightmare,” while Susana called it “broken.”
“I never would imagine we have no rights, no rights at all, nothing, zero,” she asserted.
Carson’s warning
Squatting is at the heart of a complex debate in the U.S. with legal, social, and moral considerations, and politicians have been reluctant to address it. Over 650,000 Americans experienced homelessness on a single night in January, a record high since the survey began in 2007 and a 12% increase from 2022, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Carson’s stance is unequivocal, advocating for the restoration of “law and order.”
He argues that America needs to enforce the law and protect its law-abiding citizens, because failing to do so could lead to dire consequences.
“If you’re not going to protect the law-abiding citizens, why should they be law-abiding citizens? You’re encouraging mass chaos and anarchy,” he warned. “And it seems to me like somebody might be actually trying to do that, because the United States is very strong militarily, but we can certainly be destroyed from within.”
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