S. Calif. Man Suspected Of Openly Hijacking Title To Vacant Homes & Renting Them Out, Leaving Owners Frustrated, Neighbors Rattled, Cops Flat-Footed

In Southern California, The Orange County Register reports:

• California's foreclosure crisis has spawned an unusual operation by a bankrupt Orange County businessman who takes control of vacant homes and rents them out, according to police, property records and neighbors.

• From an office at an Anaheim massage clinic, Blair Hanloh has recorded deeds on at least 12 vacant houses in Southern California that he does not own. Property records show no evidence that the owners deeded interest to him—and five owners interviewed by The Orange County Register said that they had not.

• Hanloh uses his deeds, to homes in Orange, Los Angeles, San Bernardino and San Diego counties, to line up tenants and to placate police, who are inevitably called by neighbors to oust new residents they believe to be squatters. (Click to learn more about the properties.)

• Hanloh's scheme has rattled neighbors, befuddled police and frustrated the properties' real owners – who say they must spend thousands of dollars in legal fees to evict the tenants.(1)

For more, see Owners say they lost vacant homes to 'renters'.

See also, D.A. to examine vacant home scheme:

• Orange County prosecutors have begun examining the law behind an unusual Southern California scheme in which an Anaheim businessman deeds vacant homes to himself and then installs renters. The District Attorney's fraud unit is working with Orange County Recorder Tom Daly to gather information about the operation by Anaheim businessman Blair Hanloh, officials said.

(1) According to the story, Hanloh twice declined comment, saying only that he is doing everything legally. "I will tell you that what I do is fight the banks," Hanloh reportedly said. Reportedly, the Orange County Sheriff's Department and Anaheim police say they are investigating. "We're getting an education, just like you are," said sheriff's Lt. Mark Levy, who oversees police services in Dana Point. "These quitclaim deeds, if misused, certainly muddy the water." Hanloh's official-looking paperwork has reportedly kept police officers from immediately taking action.

The story states that Hanloh's scheme appears similar to one in Pasco County, Fla., where a man took over 72 homes under a law called "adverse possession," renting out half of them, according to published reports. He was arrested in February on fraud charges. See C. Fla. Man Claims "Adverse Possession" Defense After Arrest On Home Hijacking Charges; Swiped 72 Houses, Rented Out 31 To Unwitting Tenants, Say Cops.