NY homeowner arrested after changing locks on alleged squatters, report says

[ripcord]

When officers arrived, they asked the men to prove their resident status. While Andaloro had the property deed in hand, neither individual could present leasing documents to back up their claims.

One man showed the outlet bills for work he claimed to have done to the house. He also claimed to have moved into the house with the help of a realtor, but would not name that individual. Officers then escorted the two men out.

After that encounter, Andaloro reportedly called a locksmith to change the locks on the house. Minutes after having the locks changed, the two men returned and called police, reportedly saying Andaloro had illegally evicted them.

In New York, it is illegal for a landlord to turn off utilities, change locks or remove belongings of someone claiming to be a tenant. Because state laws also grant rights to those who have been squatters for at least 30 days, police told Andaloro the issue had become a landlord-tenant dispute which could only be settled in housing court.

https://cbs6albany.com/news/local/ny-homeowner-arrested-after-changing-locks-on-alleged-squatters-report-says-nyc-adele-andaloro-flushing-queens-kathy-hochul-eric-adams-big-apple-abc-7-long-island-arrest-handcuffs-squatting-home-rights

This crap couldn't get anymore absurd, now they don't even have to show any proof, I guess you can just walk into a house and claim residency. After 30 days they have tenants rights and these cops just gave it to these grifters with no evidence. Now with evictions taking over 20 months this poor woman has to pay the utilities for the trash living there all that time or she goes back to jail.

[exboyfil]

1. That is the kind of thing that costs Democrats elections

[Elessar Zappa]

7. What does this have to do with Democrats?

The article didn’t say anything about Democrats.

[Stinky The Clown]

8. Who got such laws enacted in the first place?

I actually have no idea in this case.

[mopinko]

17. those laws r common all over the country.

it’s the law here in il, and has been for decades. they get passed cuz landlords have been using every trick in the book w tenants from time immemorial.

[progressoid]

11. It's the kind of thing that right wing media likes to harp about.

Liberal New York lets squatters have more rights than home owners or something to that effect.

[ScratchCat]

2. I know some people wont want to hear it, but

There is almost always "more to the story" in these "squatter" incidents. And they always involve unoccupied houses. This whole "squatter" nonsense is also a right wing narrative trying to convince the population that immigrants can just walk into your house while you are at work and then it belongs to them. Not the case. This nonsense is hyped to the extreme. In this case, the woman's mistake was not calling the police before entering the home. You call the law and say you arrived at your home to fins someone in it, and it's not going to be seen as a "landlord/tenant" dispute. Further, the story is confusing because it says the police escorted the two individuals she found out of the home. If the police decided it was a landlord/tenant dispute, then they would not have escorted the men out. So, there is more here.

[former9thward]

6. What is the "more"?

The link has the story. There is no "more to the story".

[ScratchCat]

14. Sue there is

As I noted, the brief article says that the police escorted out the two men that were living in the home. If the police had determined there was nothing they could no because it was a civil dispute, they could not have escorted the two men out who were living there. It also says she claims to have inherited the home, meaning it is possible that the two men began occupying the home before she even owned it. There are obviously details left out.

These are always one-sided stories. They almost always involve homes that nobody was living in for an extended period of time. And again, the RW has been pushing and exaggerating these stories for a few years now trying to pretend that every working American is at risk of coming home to find someone(read: illegal immigrant) "squatting" in their home with nothing they can do about it.

Also, many of these stories involve where someone has mocked up a fake lease. It is a very unfortunate situation, but there is nothing the police can do and it has to work its way through the court system. It sucks. That's why you check on and secure your second/vacation home; you put up "no trespassing" signs with your contact info; you have a reputable management company take care of it.

[BannonsLiver]

9. Oh FFS it's not just a right wing meme.

And It’s okay not to defend these low lifes.

[Maraya1969]

12. Yea, they escorted the men out but after she changed the locks she was arrested. that does not make sense

And the one guy at least was there at the end of the video claiming he wouldn't leave until she paid some bill (unknown if she hired him or he just brought some bill but there should have been a name on it)

[former9thward]

3. Paying the utilities is the least of it.

The squatters will totally trash the place before they are tossed out in 20 months, if then.

[Johnny2X2X]

4. The system needs to protect homeowners too

And these rules are not just pushed by people fighting for tenants, but by some real estate corporations too. Incidents like this one will drive indiviudal landlords out of business and help the coprorations who will by all the homes up and do short term rentals with them.

The pause in evictions crushed a lot of small landlords, people who had a second home they rented out, or an apartment above their primary residence that they leased out. The corporations just waited tight knowing that they'd see a lot of these homes in foreclosure soon enough.

I've known people who owned a second home that they leased out, and more than one of them got totally screwed by renters. There are ways we can protect renters and familes at the same time as having common sense regulations around evictions that also don'tr hurt small landlords.

[mopinko]

18. being w/o rent checks for more than a few mos can absolutely crush a small landlord.

i have a 2flat, and i had a sf. i started some big improvements in 2020, and lost a contractor, then another. it was so hard to find anyone, then when it’s not just finishing someone else’s job, but fixing their fuck ups…. i ended up paying a handyman $75/hr to finish it.
not only empty for over 2 yrs, but pouring money in. drained my savings, ran up debts. ended up selling the sf. got back to where i was, but w/o a $3k/mo rent check.
i’m ok. but sure not as comfy as i was. if i ever get my ss straightened out, i’ll b in right.

i’m still a lucky duck. the bldg didnt burn, nobody stole my copper, my asshole son squatted for a while, but i had no legal trouble on that front.
used to b a rich lady tho. le sigh. i’m fine, but i cant give it away like i used to.

[Think. Again.]

5. So what are signed leases for?

[XanaDUer2]

10. Kick

[Maraya1969]

13. I just posted my own squatter story yesterday. Here is the link

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10181987204#post6

[Marthe48]

15. I thought of you when I read this

Whatever state you live in, make sure you know your rights, no matter what side of the situation you are on.

[mopinko]

19. i got bit like that once, but not as bad.

a friend of my youngest’s was looking for someone who cd print up his comics for him to take to comicon. i had seen him asking for a place to stay on fb.
ended up letting him stay cuz i was going away and needed someone to take care of the menagerie. i was gonna let him work off his keep for a while, but he was so incompetent, then cried about how mean i was on fb.
when i told him to get out, he announced he had 30 days. yeah, he knew the rules. called the cops. had to put up w him to 90 days. cops- u brought this on yourself. didnt call me a sucker, but…

anyone i let stay more than 2 nights is gonna sign something that they get 24hrs.

[unblock]

16. Shockingly enough, landlords are sometimes *ssholes, too.

Yes, there are sometimes people who just occupy a vacant apartment or house.

But there are also landlords who want to break a lease. Rent control in nyc gives them an incentive to get rid of tenants so they can charge a higher rent to new tenants.

A cousin of mine is a NY real estate lawyer and he has had more than one case where the landlord entered the apartment (illegally, of course) searched for and took the tenant's copy of the lease, then claimed they were "squatters". In one case the landlord previously ginned up an argument and made the tenant show the clause in the lease, just to find out where they kept it. Then literally the next day it was gone.


Not claiming who's right or wrong in this case or in the majority of cases. But the legal eviction process seems like the right way to resolve these disputes, and that process may take time. In the meanwhile, if the landlord is right and the tenant is allowed to stay they're unfairly out money, but it's only money; but if the tenant is right and they're booted out, they're unfairly out of a place to live, which could be a complete disaster.

[Dr. Strange]

20. Prosecutors are charging Brian Rodriguez with burglary, grand larceny, and other crimes.

https://abc7ny.com/prosecutors-are-charging-brian-rodriguez-with-burglary-grand-larceny-and-other-crimes-after-he-allegedly-squatted-in-a-queens-home/14688316/

[ripcord]

21. As Gomer Pyle would say

Surprise, surprise, surprise.