Could a bad breakup cost you your house? - WCAX.COM Local Vermont News, Weather and Sports-

Steven Beland, 55, is living out of his Jeep.

"I'd rather sleep in this Jeep than sleep on the ground," he said.

The diabetic bounces between friends' driveways and the woods, never allowed to stay in one place too long.

"I own a home, but I'm homeless," Beland said.

Beland owns a home in Brookfield but he's not allowed near it as long as Marcy Crosby is also living there.

"It was my impression that we were going to have a family," Crosby said.

A year ago, Beland invited Crosby and her daughter to move in, but he didn't make Crosby sign a lease.

"I thought it was two people that lived together, have a house together and it's a home together. I never heard of such things, growing up, that you have to have a lease with a girlfriend who moves in," Beland said.

In July, the relationship went south. The couple fought over Beland's car. He's accused of pulling Crosby from the vehicle. Police were called and Beland was charged with domestic assault.

"I hope he answers to somebody one day," Crosby said. "It serves him right that I'm still in his house."

Beland denies the allegations. In court, a judge banned him from having contact with Crosby or her daughter. Since they're still in his house, he's effectively homeless.

"The conditions of release say I can go to my house, but also the conditions of release are not to have contact with Marcy or [her daughter]," Beland said. "How do I do that?"

Angela Zaikowski/Lawyer: Those criminal court orders can effectively evict one person out of the residence.

Reporter Jennifer Costa: Even if it's the homeowner?

Angela Zaikowski: Even if it's the homeowner. It's something that can happen with a homeowner and their guest, their tenant. It's something that can happen tenant to tenant.

Zaikowski practices landlord-tenant law. She's also the director of the Vermont Apartment Owners Association. She says part of the problem is Vermont's broad definitions of tenants and rental agreements.

"There is no magic timeframe in Vermont," she said. "The person could come in and stay with you overnight or they could stay a couple of nights and you unwittingly may have a tenant."

A lease may offer some protection but it's not required for someone to have tenants' rights.

"There's no requirement that rent be paid for you to have a rental agreement," Zaikowski said.

Whether it's a couch surfer camping out, a roommate refusing to pay rent or a breakup gone bad, if the person refuses to go willingly, the only option is to go through a civil eviction. That process takes at least two to three months in Vermont.

"I haven't done anything wrong," Crosby said.

She balks at her ex's allegation that she's a squatter.

"No, I paid the bills, thank you," she said. "I got the lights turned on in my name, thank you."

Crosby says she wants to move out. She also says she does not want to uproot her daughter.

"In her little mind, this was her home," Crosby said.

"I'm the victim," Beland said. "Plain and simple, I'm the victim."

Beland is fighting to get Crosby out.

"Due process of law is keeping me in the streets," Beland said.

Can Crosby stay or will the court compel her to go? Beland and Crosby are due back in court Wednesday. Beland's attorney has filed a motion asking the court to drop the no contact order so her client can start the eviction process. She says the court will also ask Crosby to document her efforts to find a new place.