A Texas man who made headlines for living in a Dallas house worth $340,000 for just $16 has had to leave the home following a judge’s order.
Kenneth Robinson had filed an “affidavit of adverse possession” giving him the right to live in the empty house in Flower Mound. He also became locally famous, giving speeches to law school students and setting up a website where he talked about his experience.
The Texan law commonly referred to as ‘squatter’s rights, gives individuals the right to move in if the rightful owner cannot be found and the property was not listed for sale. Authorities could not find the person or business connected to the home that could file a complaint against the 51-year-old man.
However, Denton County Justice of the Peace J.W. Hand ruled that lienholder Bank of America can force Robinson out.
By law, a true owner or mortgage holder has 5, 10 or 25 years to reassert ownership, depending on whether Robinson lives continuously in the house and pays taxes and homeowners association during that period. In the end, it was found that Bank of America was the mortgage holder and had foreclosed on the property.
Robinson had to eventually move out, ending what he refers to as a “huge learning experience.”
According to David DeCosse, the director of campus ethics programs at the Markkulla Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University, Robinson may have the right to do what he is doing, but that does not mean that it is the right thing to do.
Authorities are cracking down on other people trying to follow in Robinson’s footsteps.
Original video: ABC News
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