Squatters take over Georgia man’s home while he was caring for sick wife — and now he can’t evict them: report

A Georgia man claims he returned home from caring for his sick wife to find that squatters had changed the locks on his home and moved in — and now local laws are blocking him from evicting the alleged freeloaders.

“Basically, these people came in Friday, broke into my house and had a U-Haul move all their stuff in. It’s frustrating. It’s very frustrating. I can’t even sleep,” DeKalb man Paul Callins told WSB-TV.

Callins had sunk thousands of dollars into the home and renovated it with his own hands after he inherited it from his late father, but since squatters moved in, he’s found himself facing nothing but obstacles to evicting the alleged intruders.

Callins had sunk thousands of dollars into the home and renovated it with his own hands after he inherited it from his late father, but since squatters moved in, he’s found himself facing nothing but obstacles to evicting the alleged intruders.

“I guess they have done this before, because when I called the police, they said since they have a fake lease, that they can’t do anything. That it’s a civil matter,” Callins said.

(Paul Callins’ DeKalb County home, which he said was overtaken by squatters while he was away caring for his sick wife.Google Maps)

Callins believes the squatters targeted him after posting a rental advertisement online.

Rather than forcibly evicting the squatters, Georgia law requires homeowners file an “Affidavit of Intruder,” which then needs to work its way through the court system before police can act, Callins explained.

“I have to go through the court system, and I understand it could take 60 to 90 days,” the homeowner said.

(Callins had sunk thousands of dollars into the home, which he renovated himself getting it ready to rent out.WSB-TV)

(Two men were observed entering the home. Callins thinks the alleged squatters have done it before at other homes.WSB-TV)

Situations like Callins’ have become all too common in Georgia. About 1,200 homes across DeKalb County are occupied by squatters, according to the National Rental Home Council trade group.

The problem is exacerbated by its status as a civil matter, which prevents homeowners from easily evicting intruders, according to critics.

Lawmakers in Georgia are nearing the passage of a bill that would make squatting a criminal offense.

Ref: Squatters take over Georgia man’s home while he was caring for sick wife — and now he can’t evict them: report (nypost)

Photo Credit-Google Maps, WSB-TV