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Can squatters legally take over your home in Texas? | Texas senators hear from victims

Some realtors say once someone takes over a home, they're hard to legally kick out. And the lengthy legal process is causing the problem to persist.

AUSTIN, Texas — More Texas homeowners say they're being kicked out of their own properties by squatters, so state lawmakers are trying to figure out how to fix that.

The issue of squatting is nothing new, but during a committee hearing on Wednesday, lawmakers discussed the fact that the laws surrounding the problem haven't changed much over the years.

Affected homeowners brought their "horror" stories to the Capitol - stories of properties being taken over by squatters.

RELATED: Southeast Austin residents fed-up with unhoused people who've taken over vacant home on the block

"I discovered my squatter on June 19. As of today, 11 months later, I still don't live in my house and can't access it because of the damage that was done," Terri Boyette, a Texas homeowner, said.

"When we disconnected the water, the electricity, the squatter illegally connected the water back into the house," homeowner Judith Matthews said.

Those are just some of the stories homeowners shared with state senators on Wednesday.

"I've only been here for about 20 minutes, and I'm outraged," State Sen. Lois Kolkhorst said at the hearing.

"Again, this shows you that government's got their thumb on one side of the state on the scale. And it's not on the homeowner's side," State Sen. Paul Bettencourt said.

In March, Gov. Greg Abbott made a post on social media platform X, highlighting his views on squatting.

Some realtors say once someone takes over a home, they're hard to legally kick out due to the lengthy legal process. And that process is contributing to a problem that is only growing.

"Had a house on the market, got it under contract. Super little. Great little house sellers. Pleased. Buyers thrilled. And I showed up on Sunday to just do a walk through, check the house. And somebody would stay in the house. And I had to call APD," realtor Kent Redding said.

As president of the Austin Board of Realtors, Redding has seen it himself.

"You know, squatters can see [the] 'pending' sign out front. Nobody's probably going to be in the house for a little while, and it's an opportunity to break in and hang out," Redding said.

RELATED: Austin Fire Department seeing an uptick in vacant structure fires caused by the unhoused

At the Capitol, realty experts told state senators that no one's really tracking data on squatting, but Redding said the issue doesn't appear to be going away.

"I don't think it's a crisis by any stretch, but it does appear to be something a little bit new, at least to me in my business," Redding said.

The committee didn't take action Wednesday, but the lawmakers did talk about legislation to expedite evictions of squatters or change law enforcement protocols for removing people when there's a dispute over home ownership.

Lawmakers could actually pass bills regarding these issues when the next legislative session starts in January.

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