Texas City Faces Hundreds of Squatters Cases

A state senator in Texas has said there are almost 500 cases of squatters in the Dallas–Fort Worth area, a local report says.

State Senator Paul Bettencourt, a Republican who represents District 7, suggested on May 16 in a hearing to review squatting laws that the Senate Committee on Local Government was looking for ways to clarify who constitutes a squatter in an effort to tackle the issue, WFAA reported.

Squatters are individuals who have established residency in a property without any legal claims to it. Cases of squatting have emerged across the country in recent months, creating complicated challenges for legislators trying to grapple with the phenomenon. Earlier in May, a New York council member proposed a bill that would create a task force to deal with the issue.

“It’s one thing to protect your legitimate renters, which is what we need to do. But squatters have no right to occupy what they do not own,” Bettencourt said at the hearing, where an owner recounted a story of a squatter at her property, WFAA reported.

Newsweek has contacted Bettencourt’s office for comment via email.

Sheriff deputies enforcing an eviction in Union City, California, on June 4, 2009. A state senator in Texas has said there are almost 500 cases of squatters in the Dallas–Fort Worth area.

Getty Images/Justin Sullivan

In its definition of a “squatter,” the American Apartment Owners Association writes, “The squatter lives in the building or on the property they select without paying rent and without lawful documentation stating they own the property, are a law-abiding tenant or that they have permission to use or access the area.”

A recent poll conducted for Newsweek by Redfield & Wilton Strategies found that Americans wanted squatters to be treated like trespassers under the law.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has suggested that squatting is illegal. In March, he wrote on X, formerly Twitter: “In Texas, anyone ‘squatting’ in your home is breaking the law. They are criminals violating TX laws like criminal trespass & criminal mischief.”

At the hearing, Bettencourt also suggested reviewing the penalties a person might incur should they be deemed to have occupied someone else’s property without legal claims to it, WFAA reported.

The issue of squatting could soon become part of the legislative agenda in the Lone Star State. In his proposed 2024 legislative charges, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick has included the issue among those he wants legislators to tackle.

He wrote: “Review current laws relating to ‘squatters’ or those claiming adverse possession of property. Make recommendations to streamline the process for the immediate removal of ‘squatters’ and to strengthen the rights of property owners.”