Serbian mother and children face sharing home with stranger after ex-husband's debt leads to apartment auction

A Belgrade woman and her two children are facing an uncertain future after their apartment was sold at auction to cover her ex-husband's debts. The situation has escalated with an enforcement officer proposing a highly unusual solution: the new owner should move into half of the apartment.

According to reports, the enforcement officer, accompanied by police and firefighters, presented this plan to the mother, Ivana. She and her children currently reside in the Vračar district apartment, which was sold due to her former spouse's financial obligations. Initial attempts to evict the family were reportedly made before this new proposal emerged.

Enforcement officer Nemanja Protić stated that, legally, the new owner has the right to take possession of the property. However, the specific half of the apartment belonging to the buyer has not been legally determined. This ambiguity means that if the buyer moves in, all occupants would share all parts of the apartment.

Citizens questioned the officer about moving an unknown person in with the mother and children, to which Protić responded that the court had ordered it and urged them to read the court's decision. The buyer's lawyer described the situation as "legal violence." Activists from "Za krov nad glavom" (For a Roof Over Our Heads) criticized Protić's actions, calling them "cynical" and an exploitation of a "loophole in the law" concerning third parties' rights in enforcement proceedings.

The activists argue that this maneuver allows the buyer to secure possession of their purchased half, forcing the woman and her children to share their only home with a stranger who acquired the property at a significantly reduced price through auction. The family currently holds the keys but awaits a definitive resolution to their predicament.