Update on Pilar – Squatting and private property rights undermined in Spain

Some of you may remember the letter I published, written by Spanish property-owner, Pilar Damian, who had her home squatted. Well, I can now update you on what happened next.

Pilar used eviction specialists, led by Dani Esteve and got possession of her property about a month ago. Click here for the article.

It is in Spanish, but you can see the devastation she found when she re-entered her home.  The squatters had not only stolen all her personal possessions including furniture (they took it all away in a lorry a few days before repossession took place), but they had deliberately warped the windows and doors and put a hose on into the attic in an attempt to wreck the roof and also run up the water bills, for which she was liable, along with gas and electricity. Naturally, Pilar was distraught.

And during all of this, she received no help at all from the authorities – not even an acknowledgement. When this happens to you, as we know in the UK, you’re on your own as far as the state is concerned. Lots of help for tenants and squatters and zilch for us.

However, thanks to Dani and his team of volunteers, I can report that the house has now been completely cleaned up, all the mould got rid of and a refurbishment has taken place. This was all done free of charge for Pilar. You can see the results if you click here.

Although you may not understand the Spanish it is basically a huge, heartfelt thank you from Pilar. Although she has lost a large amount of money on legal fees, utility bills and having to sell her home for less than she would previously have obtained before the criminals entered her home, at least she feels there is light at the end of the tunnel.

I must say I think we can all learn from Dani’s act of generosity, though. I’ve often thought that the national landlord bodies should set up a network of landlord-volunteers to help landlords who have the misfortune to get rogue tenants. For instance, if even 5-10 volunteers turned up at a trashed house, we could all take away a car-load of rubbish to get rid of and save the landlord on skips. Some of us might be able to paint a room or repair some broken things. Wouldn’t that be great?

Anyway, I have written another piece, which is published today, which goes into more analysis of what squatting is doing to people in Spain and drawn some parallels with the UK situation and our Government’s undermining of private property rights. If you can visit the site and give it a rating, that would be helpful, as I am then more likely to be able to get other pro-landlord and pro-private property rights articles published. It is here  Squatters in Spain: why Tories must defend property rights 

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