In a bizarre case, a man managed to live in a three-bedroom house that he didn't own for over 20 years.
Guramrit Hanspal, 52, bought the 2,081-square-foot East Meadow property in 1998 for $290,000 but made just one mortgage payment before defaulting, according to the New York Post.
Hanspal initially financed the purchase through Washington Mutual, paying only $1,602.37 before falling behind on payments.
Since then, he has employed various legal tactics to remain in the home mortgage-free for over two decades.
These maneuvers included filing four lawsuits and declaring bankruptcy seven times to take advantage of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code's "automatic stay" rule, which offers temporary protection from repossession.
Despite a foreclosure judgment in May 2000 that “forever barred” Hanspal from claiming the property, he continued to live in the home.
The house has since changed hands multiple times, going from Washington Mutual, which collapsed in the 2008 financial crisis, to JP Morgan Chase, and then to the current owner, Diamond Ridge Partners, a real estate firm.
Each owner has struggled to remove Hanspal from the property, entangled in ongoing legal disputes.
Frustration grew among legal officials as the case continued to stall. “The history of this case going on for approximately 20 years must come to an end,” Nassau District Court Judge Scott Fairgrieve wrote during a housing court proceeding in December 2019.
Attorney Jordan Katz, representing Diamond Ridge Partners, voiced similar frustrations, stating that Hanspal had misused the legal system.
"People like Hanspal are more than willing to use the courts and abuse the courts to whatever extent they need to extend their illegal occupancy," Katz said.
He added that “nothing even approaches the length” of time Hanspal managed to occupy a foreclosed home.
Hanspal reportedly shared the property with fellow resident Bhagwant Srichawla, and the pair filed for Covid-19 Hardship declarations in an effort to further stave off evictions.
Srichawla has since died in a car crash.
After a final legal defeat in November 2021, authorities arrived at the property to enforce the eviction, per the Sun.
Nassau County Sheriff’s deputies changed the locks on the two-story corner house, marking the second time officials had attempted to remove Hanspal since a judge’s ruling in September of that year deemed his occupancy illegal.
Shortly after Hanspal’s removal, his tenant Parmjit Puar filed an emergency motion with the court requesting a 30-day extension, citing a lack of alternative housing.
