Condos grapple with squatters

Already beleaguered condo associations now have a new worry: squatters in vacant units. Some are foreclosed owners who haven’t left, others are living rent-free in units where they pay nothing. Dorine Neal, president of the 96-unit Circle Villa Condominium Association in Lauderhill, said there are at least several unit-owner squatters and a rental squatter in her complex, and that the numbers are growing. Bill Raphan, a South Florida supervisor with the Office of the Condominium Ombudsman, said owners are mad at condo boards, which in turn say it’s tedious and costly to get squatters out.