Le Figaro Nice
“No one is protecting us!”
, laments the young woman on the phone, both bitter and distraught.
The latter, who prefers to remain anonymous and whom we will call Charlotte *, has been living a real nightmare for several months.
Owner of a studio in Nice, in a brand new residence, she has never been able to rent her property for the simple reason that it was squatted by two strangers before she could even sign any lease. with some tenant.
If the intruders, after a fierce battle of several months, have finally cleared out, they leave Charlotte a studio good to redo from floor to ceiling.
Worse, the squatters have since moved into a neighboring apartment, in the same residence.
By buying, at the beginning of January 2022, a small studio in an ultramodern residence in the Saint-Roch district, in Nice, Charlotte did not expect the situation to degenerate to this point.
This well, it was not for her.
It was in fact a Pinel investment, which offers a tax advantage (a tax reduction of up to 63,000 euros) to individuals who buy one or two new homes to rent them out.
The principle is quite simple: each year, the tax authorities pay owners benefiting from the device part of the amount of the investment.
12% of the purchase price for a six-year lease commitment, 18% for nine years and 21% for twelve years.
Read alsoLoi Pinel: the little-known advantages of the tax advantage in old real estate
At first, the young woman is delighted.
Several visits are organized, and she is hopeful of renting quickly.
But very quickly, she discovers that the locks have been changed and that individuals have appropriated the premises.
"When I got there, I said to myself 'I must be dreaming'.
I asked the neighbors if they had seen or heard anything, but nothing.
At that moment, a gentleman arrived and approached the door of my apartment.
I asked him if he lived here and with great confidence he replied ''yes'',
she recalls
.
His companion then opened the door, she told me that she had a lease and that it was a real one since she had been careful not to ''
be fooled''.
That's when I realized it was going to be complicated.
»
A complaint not registered
Charlotte is not dreaming, she has just met her squatters.
A couple in their thirties parents of an infant of about two years old.
She immediately asks them for the lease they claim to have, but the two individuals kick into touch.
“They told me it was in the cloud on their computer and they would email it to me.
I tried to repeat to them that a lease was necessarily on paper, they insisted and we left it there during this first meeting
, ”continues Charlotte.
Curious to consult this lease which she knows in advance will be false, she sends them her email address despite everything.
Two days later, the document is given to him.
And unsurprisingly, there's nothing real about it.
“It was a completely illicit lease, without signatures, without a letterhead.
They had the nerve to put in a big state backer, whom I obviously called and who confirmed to me that it was a fake.
And the contact details they gave me are those of the department's housing assistance.
Read alsoFight against the squat: the tone goes up
Very logically, Charlotte immediately goes to the police station to file a complaint.
She wants to
"be in the law"
and wants to assert her rights.
With all the documents proving not only that she is the owner of the apartment but above all that the two individuals are not her tenants, she hopes that the situation will be resolved without delay.
But once again, it's a cold shower.
“
It was a Saturday morning.
I was first made to understand that it was the weekend and that the police had other things to do.
Then I was told there was no trespass, no evidence and therefore no squat.
The sky fell on my head”
, recalls the young woman.
Faced with the police, she desperately tries to prove her good faith, in vain.
Even if the locks have been replaced, even if the lease is a fake, even if the so-called tenants are not clear about their identity, the police can't help it because the break-in is not characterized.
In the end, his complaint is not recorded.
“I became the squatter of my own apartment”
“Since I have been doing this job, I have often had to deal with this kind of problem. The chancellery pushes the agents not to take too many complaints to avoid dropping the statistics and we end up with grotesque situations like this
, ”argues Me Fabien Collado, Charlotte's lawyer.
It is also he who will end up filing a criminal complaint for his client, directly with the public prosecutor of Nice.
A procedure is then launched, and, as of May, a summons for eviction is delivered by bailiff to the couple of squatters.
However, they do not leave the premises.
On August 10, the investigation is entrusted to the Departmental Security of the Alpes-Maritimes, as specified in
Figaro
the Nice prosecutor, Xavier Bonhomme.
A hearing is then set for September 14.
Hearing to which they do not deign to go and whose deliberation is expected in the days to come.
Read alsoSquats and unpaid rent: landlords have their say
For her part, tired of waiting, of demanding justice, and feeling the situation getting bogged down, Charlotte decides to act alone at the beginning of October.
One afternoon, she goes to the residence in the Saint-Roch district.
"
I knocked on the door, no one was there.
I immediately called a locksmith, who changed my locks, and that's how I got my apartment back.
I became the squatter of my own apartment
,” she quips.
Impressive damage
Inside, the damage is impressive.
The shutters are blown, the hob is out of order, the kitchen doors are undone, the radiators have been ripped out, there are holes in the walls, the separation doors are destroyed, products have been thrown on the walls and the ceilings and toilets are to be completely changed.
“
They didn't like the assignment, it's revenge on their part
,” said Charlotte.
The latter has now embarked on the process of making estimates for refurbishment.
She estimates the damage at more than 10,000 euros.
Considerable damage
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The story could have ended there.
But it was without counting on the nerve of the couple of squatters who settled in an apartment next to that of Charlotte, in the same residence.
The owner, a man living in the north of France, is distraught in turn.
"It's all the more terrible for him that he had just signed a lease with a real tenant who was to move in soon
," adds Me Collado, who is also his counsel.
And the lawyer to sharply rebuke the syndicate of co-ownership:
“Since the beginning, they have done nothing.
Their responsibility is fully engaged.”
Leaflets to call for vigilance
Joined by
Le Figaro
, the condominium association in question ensures that everything is done for the owners.
“We act as trustees and not as police officers.
These two owners are affected by a disorder that affects their private portions.
We manage the common areas, unfortunately we can't do anything about the rest."
, defends its director.
The latter also recalls that a special general meeting was convened last summer to vote on various security works for the residence.
Including the installation of a video surveillance system.
Recently, and in order to make access to the residence more difficult, the digital code at the entrance was deactivated and replaced by an electronic badge system.
This has, again, not slowed down the couple of squatters.
“The apartment they are squatting in is on the ground floor and faces the street.
To enter and exit, he goes through the window
, ”explains the union.
In addition, a complaint for "power theft" was filed by the condominium syndicate.
Because for months, the squatters have illegally plugged into the electrical outlets of the common areas.
Finally, leaflets calling for vigilance were distributed in mailboxes.
For his part, Me Collado regrets
“a lack of severity in the justice system with regard to squatters.
It is to believe that we protect them more than the owners!
