Condo Association Management Blog

You have a two part problem here. The way to remove a squatter is to file an eviction action in your local court. However, only the owner can do that. So, in this instance, you would have to foreclose on the absentee owner to be able to do this so that your association would be the legal owner of the unit. Then, you would be able to evict the squatter. Once the judge signs the eviction notice, you would be able to send the sheriff out there to physically remove the squatter from the property. You would then have to secure the property so that your squatter couldn't come back. 
 
Darron Hay 
 
Assessment Recovery

Send registered return receipt letter tio the squatter asking for proof he has owner permission to live in the unit. Furjhter ask for point of contact with unit owner. Lacfking a response have condo laswyer petition circuit court for eviction notice,

Our condo bylaws indicate that in the absence of the owner, the Board can act as agent for the owner and remove a tenant. We also have a clause that indicates if a tenant is breaking the rules and the owner continues to do nothing to rectify the situation, the Board can still act as the owner agent and have the tenant removed. We have a third feather in our cap - during the tenant interview process, we have the tenant sign a statement indicating that they know they can be removed by the Board for repeated infractions. Might be a good idea to make a change to the bylaws if you dont already have something in place.

You need to do a few things: look at your condo documents, review the laws in your state regarding Associations and consult your attorney. Hopefully you already have a lien in place and have started foreclosure action. Keep in mind you may not be able to evict the occupant just because the owner is not paying fees unless the occupant has actually broken a rule. If they are violating the rules and regulations of your property you will have to file against the unit owner because they are actually the landlord, and list the occupant too. If they don't vacate you can initiate eviction asting as the owners agent. If you pay any of the utilities, you may see if your state allows you to stop providing the service if the condo fees pay for that service (you may have to get a court order) because in some states water is not required unless children live in the unit.

I live in FL and cannot say what NY laws are, however, Dan is correct I'd say. File a lien on the property (legal ownership is on file with the property appraisers office I'd think). If the owner isn't paying fees or assessments, foreclose on lien. This is all lawyers work. Talk with tenant(s) and have them provide proof of rental; if they have none, call the police and have them removed as trespassers.

Having a similar problem with our association, we filed with our attorney a eviction notice along with the evictee paying all legal fees...We were successful and collected on 3 diifferent occassions.