A home in an upscale part of Albuquerque is literally being picked apart by squatters and neighbors are begging the out-of-state owners to do something about it.
“That’s like the worst thing I’ve ever seen,” said Sharon Cole, who lives nearby.
The home near Wyoming and Academy used to be a nice house in what still is a nice neighborhood.
“We’re very proud of our neighborhood,” said Cole.
Neighbors say the homeowner passed away about a year and a half ago and since then the house has sat mostly empty.
“It’s fallen into disrepair and people are breaking into it,” said Samantha Edwards, who lives nearby.
The home used to have a wood fence around the property but overtime thieves have come and stolen nearly every single piece of wood off of it. Ever since that started happening, people started moving in and making themselves at home.
Through a shattered glass door, you can see inside the house. There are clothes, shoes, trash, and knives laying across the floor.
“Not safe, not safe at all,” said Edwards.
The home is managed by Michigan based Five Brothers, a property preservation company. A sign on the window gives people a number to call to report problems. Neighbors say they have called but they ‘haven’t heard anything’ back.
The city of Albuquerque’s Planning Department cited Five Brothers back in May for excessive weeds, litter and a fallen section of the picked apart fence.
The city says securing the home and keeping the squatters out is up to Five Brothers.
“If it’s not sold or secured people are going to keep breaking into it,” said Edwards.
The city and Five Brothers have a joint meeting at the home next week to talk about possible solutions.
KRQE News 13 called Five Brothers Friday, but did not hear back.