A couple was arrested earlier this month and charged with child neglect after police found them living in squalor in a home they didn't own or rent.

Eboni Tucker-Smith and Daquan Smith were squatting in a home in a nice Ocoee neighborhood for months, and they could have continued living there if they weren't living in filth.

Because six children were also living in the home, Ocoee police were forced to come in and arrest the couple.

According to police, the couple drew up a fake lease and had the electricity turned on in a number of names. If the couple kept the home in decent condition, they likely could have continued squatting there for years.

In fact, once they post bail, they could go back to the house.

"In Eboni's situation, we have a bank that's basically saying we are not going to foreclose on this house," said Lt. Mike Bryant, of the Ocoee Police Department. "Then we have the owners, and the owners are saying, 'I don't want this,' so she picked the right house at the right time."

Squatting is a tough issue for law enforcement as Florida continues to lead the nation in foreclosures.

Squatters find the homes listed online and move in. Unless a crime is committed or an "owner" is kicking them out, there's not much authorities can do.

"You have to have a victim — an owner or a representative of these houses — say that person shouldn't be in here," Bryant said. "The police can't go in and say, 'This isn't your house.'"

The problem has become so widespread in the city of Ocoee that officials passed an ordinance to deal with squatting.

As soon as a home goes into foreclosure, the city assigns responsibility to the bank to keep the home up. The bank is fined if the home falls into disrepair, but many counties and cities don't have a similar ordinance.

Jaya Balani, News 13's legal analyst, said the law requires an eviction process even if the residents are legally in the home.

"The eviction process is expensive, and there are people who can't even afford it who are struggling," Balani said. "Then (they) have to pay for an eviction, have them served, then wait (the) time frame to get them out. In the meantime, the house can be damaged, and who knows what can happen inside here."

In the end, though, it's the neighbors who pay the price with residents who don't care and an eyesore just down the street.