After immersing himself in “horror stories” about the arduous battles against squatters, Shelton boldly embraced the task at hand. In order not to get himself tangled in the labyrinthine web of squatters’ legal entitlements, he had to become one himself. To add a layer of precaution, he orchestrated his mother’s authorship of an airtight lease agreement, duly stamped with the seal of notarial approval.
In New York, for example, squatters attain legal privileges in as little as 30 days, leading to increased challenges in the eviction process which is already mind-boggling in itself. The laws are pretty much the same in sunny Los Angeles, where property owners frequently find themselves compelled to pay in order to remove illegal tenants.
Infiltrating the property as a squatter, armed with a notarized lease and a firearm , Shelton confronted the strangers living in his mother’s houseUpon entering the residence after waiting in the car for the squatters to leave, Flash discovered a wealth of furniture and numerous boxes of possessions filling the space. Opting for a proactive approach, he chose to install security cameras. While he was in the process of setting up the cameras, however, the squatters made their return.
Shelton gave the illegal residents until midnight to get their stuff out of the house before it legally becomes his. Soon, the squatters were out of his hair, with no furniture left behind.