Re:Why are more than 10M homes vacant in India?
by nine_k on Monday May 25, 2015 @01:52PM
(#9600948)
Squatting definitely limits your property rights. Imagine that if your backpack is vacant for some time, and someone put tacitly someting into it, you'd be legally obliged to carry it around.
I suspect that squatting rights only affect obviously neglected property. I suppose the empty houses and apartments are reasonably guarded and are not as neglected as a closed and half-dismantled building. Also, squatting does damage the property, hopefully in minor ways. Imagine that your empty backpack was loaded with pizza slices: totally benign, but you'll have to clean the backpack thoroughly.
Property rights in most countries are mitigated by a variety of competing communal rights such as eminent domain, zoning, and environmental laws. I think squatting rights could potentially protect communal rights in a similar way.