‘It’s a big win’: Florida’s Ron DeSantis signs 2 new laws to stop squatters from taking over hotels, restaurants and businesses — but is squatting really that big of an issue in the US?

How the new laws protect commercial property owners

Senate Bill 322 speeds up the process for removing squatters from commercial properties. It also gives law enforcement more authority to act quickly, allows owners to recover their spaces without long legal battles and safeguards against financial losses and property damage caused by squatters.

At the same time, Senate Bill 606 specifically targets the hospitality industry. It clarifies that guests can't claim residency after overstaying their welcome at hotels or food establishments, helping prevent drawn-out disputes that previously tied the hands of business owners.

One recent case in Sarasota highlighted this challenge. A woman refused to leave the Westin Sarasota, despite causing disturbances in both the pool and dining area.

“She had a lot of erratic behavior .... We asked her to leave. She kept coming back,” the hotel manager said in Florida Cop Cam footage. But the situation escalated to the point where police were called in.

The new laws aim to make situations like that easier to resolve, without the need for weeks of legal wrangling or uncertainty.

Governor DeSantis framed the legislation as a defense of economic stability and property rights.

“You’re either paying or you’re not and if you’re not, it shouldn’t evolve into some major landlord-tenant dispute … I think this is something that will be really good for our economy. Property rights are really important. If you don’t have private property rights, you cannot have a free society,” he said at a press conference.

State Representative Peggy Gossett-Seidman, who helped push the issue forward, added, “They run under the radar, because we didn’t have the teeth in the statutes to try and remove them in all cases.”

Sarasota County Sheriff Kurt Hoffman agreed, noting the disruption caused by unauthorized occupants.

“Those folks are trying to make money, pay their employees, pay their rent. Many times we would come in there and find the facilities destroyed,” he said at the press conference. “Having that language in there that defines what ‘transient’ is makes it easier for my deputies to go out and get these folks out.”

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Is squatting a true issue?

While squatting has made headlines in states such as New York and California, its true scale remains unclear. According to an informal survey by the National Rental Home Council (NRHC), cities in Georgia, Florida and Texas have more squatters than any other metro areas.

The survey reported 1,200 squatters in Atlanta, 475 in Dallas-Fort Worth and around 125 in Orange County, Florida.

While there may be little documentation proving the exact number of occurrences, viral videos and high-profile incidents have played a big part in sparking a wave of legislation.

“Some people will make the argument that this is a very rare occurrence. But I think if it happens once or twice, it’s unacceptable,“ New York Democratic State Sen. Jessica Scarcella-Spanton once said. “Just seeing the cases that we’ve seen over the last couple of months in the news is reason enough to move forward with legislation.”

Florida joins a growing list of states taking legislative action. New York, Alabama and California have each proposed or passed bills to curb squatting, especially when it affects homeowners or small landlords. Still, some housing advocates worry the laws could be misapplied.

There’s the potential for new laws to be interpreted incorrectly and be applied to legal tenants who can’t make rent, which could actually worsen housing insecurity — which is a valid concern.

Even so, Florida’s new laws reflect mounting public pressure to act and the desire among lawmakers to respond swiftly.