'Needles all over': Landlord frustrated with 'squatters' during eviction process

A Saskatoon landlord and his daughter say they're frustrated dealing with "squatters" who they say have taken residence in the backyard of a house embroiled in an eviction case.

"It looked like the city landfill site. It was deplorable," said 72-year-old Ervin Senger, the owner of the home on Avenue R South.

Senger has since hired someone to remove the debris for $700.

Some larger pieces of debris, including mangled bicycles and shopping carts, were removed Saturday. But lots of accumulated garbage, including clothing, remain in the backyard.

"Tents were created. It was full of garbage they brought in to the point that the fire department also contacted my father and let him know he had to remove the garbage," said daughter Debora Senger.

She said said they also found needles all over the yard.

"It's a safety [concern] for neighbouring children who may walk onto the property," she said.

Saskatoon fire department's acting battalion Chief Dale Altrogge said piled-up refuse in a yard can be ordered removed following a complaint from a neighbour on the grounds of unsightliness and because vermin might be attracted to the site.

This can also happen after a visual inspection fromthe fire department.

Dealing with squatters' property

Debora Senger said the tenant, who did not respond to multiple requests for comment, was given an eviction notice on Sept. 16.

She said the tenant has since returned to the home, where utilities have been cut off for weeks.

Other people have continued to stay in the backyard, according to Senger, and for a while inside a shed that's now been demolished.

Debora Senger on "squatters" in backyard of her father's rental home

7 years ago

Duration 0:40

Debora Senger on "squatters" in backyard of her father's rental home

"The situation has turned into one where half a dozen to, we don't know, up to 10, 12 people [are] squatting on the property," she said.

'Just need to follow the process'

Chanda Lockhart, the executive officer for the Saskatchewan Landlord Association, cautions landlords who are going through an eviction process against removing property from a backyard.

Lockhart said it's in the landlord's best interest not to remove anything until he has successfully obtained a writ of possession to have the tenant removed.

The exception is items that clearly don't belong there (such as shopping carts) or if the renter has signed a statement confirming the contents don't belong to them.

Even if that happens, Lockhart says Senger should wait until he has a writ of disposition authorizing him to toss the stuff in the backyard.

"It's very frustrating," she said of situations like Senger's. Sengersaid she's been in a similarsituation with squatters through an eviction process.

"You just need to take a step back and breathe because rushing into the situation isn't going to help any. You just need to follow the process and it's only going to take another two to three weeks."

Debora Senger said her father is still weighing whether to apply for the writ of possession or to have health inspectors look inside the house to help him decide whether it should be condemned.