ANNAPOLIS, Md. (WBFF) — Maryland Gov. Wes Moore signed two bills into law on Tuesday aimed at cracking down on the state’s squatter issues, including a bill that targets alleged online squatting rings and makes the manufacturing or possession of a fraudulent lease a felony.
Moore’s signature comes a year after Spotlight on Maryland launched an investigation into squatting cases across the state, documenting how suspected squatters have used alleged fraudulent leases, civil court delays, and law enforcement uncertainty to occupy homes from Baltimore to Bethesda.
For nearly a year, Maryland homeowners, landlords, and neighbors described the same unsettling pattern regardless of zip code: vacant houses taken over, alleged fake leases presented to police, court cases dragging on for months or years, and property owners left watching from the sidewalk as strangers remained inside homes they did not own.
Spotlight on Maryland’s investigation found that homeowners and neighbors often faced a legal maze after unauthorized occupants claimed tenancy rights, while those purportedly profiting from breaking in and selling fake leases benefited…