Squatter Gets Texas Luxury Home for $16

Thanks to a little-known Texas real estate law, one creative guy seems to have snagged a $300,000 Texas home for just $16, reports KHOU-TV. Kenneth Robinson found a high-end home that had been abandoned after the owner walked away and the mortgage company went bankrupt. Then he filled out a form at the local courthouse, paid the $16 fee, and claimed ownership of the home, in a process called adverse possession. "This is not a normal process, but it is not a process that is not known," Robinson said. "It's just not known to everybody."

Unsurprisingly, Robinson's neighbors, who actually paid for their homes, are less than impressed. "If he wants the house, buy the house like everyone else had to," said one neighbor. "Get the money, buy the house." But the police say this is a civil matter, so they cannot do anything. Gawker has more background on Robinson and the law of adverse possession. (More real estate stories.)