It varies by state, but there are homestead and eviction laws that prevent you from kicking someone out of their sole residence without a lengthy process. It’s meant to protect people from landlords/banks, but unfortunately enables jerks in situations like this.
My real estate agent also said police hate dealing with cases like this, so they’ll drag their feet as much as possible as well (I briefly considered a cheap “buyer responsible for evicting tenants” property).
This can go on for months, and meanwhile the tenants may very well be tearing all the copper out of the walls. All you can do is sit around and wait for a lengthy eviction process (and even lengthier lawsuit to follow). Attempts to remove tenants in this situation can end up getting you in legal trouble for trespassing, harassment, etc.
Got a very good deal on a house by being kind. Owners were building a new one and there were major problems causing a big delay at the last minute after offers were submitted. They took our very lowball offer because we were renting month to month and could be as flexible as they needed.
What I don’t get about this is the consequences. So now you’re that guy who was a complete, obviously scammy a-hole to other people and your name will be Google-able in perpetuity to illustrate this fact for anyone who bothers to look.
I hope this works in favor of a friend I have in Houston. During the COVID shutdown, he was having very little luck organizing his state and federal assistance (he is legally blind), and gradually fell behind on his rent and utilities. Sometime towards the end of last year, his apartment block was sold and they brought in a new management team, who has proceeded to play hardball with anyone behind in their rent, including threatening evictions. He is willing to pay what he owes, but a lot of the paperwork he arduously completed for help has been stalled, misfiled or ‘lost’ either at the organizational level or in the building’s office.
About 15 years ago I rented my Australian condo to someone who turned out to have no intention of paying rent. I discovered this upon arriving in Canada. I promptly jumped on a flight back, arrived jet-lagged and angry, let myself into the unit, and waited for him to come home. Let us just say that I had the element of surprise and he had grocery bags in each hand. That is, it wasn’t exactly a fair fight. Thankfully he didn’t go to the police. I stayed in Oz for a couple of months and sold the property.
[Edit: I wouldn’t recommend this approach. All I knew at the time was that I was dealing with a young male. I had no idea what he looked like or how many people were living in my unit. He could have showed up with 3 friends, all of them rugby players, and none of them holding groceries.]
As far as I can tell, from all the stories I’ve seen about this case, everything about this purchase was completely fine up until it was time to hand over the keys. Nothing sketchy at all. And no, realtors aren’t doing background checks on sellers, they’re checking that the property is properly titled and without liens, etc. And it’s completely normal to buy a house that’s currently occupied and put in the agreement the “must leave by” date. So fine, sale goes through, everyone signs. Then this guy refuses to turn over the keys and refuses to leave.
At this point, you’re dealing with a squatter situation. And as far as I know, California law makes it hard to remove squatters. They get similar treatment to renters. You have to take them to court to get them out. And with covid locking things down, the courts haven’t been any help so far.
It’s a shitty situation for the buyers, no question. But there’s no way they would have known this was going to happen. They’re doing everything they can, including getting the press involved, but ultimately their only hope is the courts take up their case soon.
Let the jerk stay, monetise the videos, and charge him rent in the meantime. Don’t evict, just keep making money off the interaction videos and his late rent payments.
