This "is a straightforward situation of illegal entry and illegal occupation," Singer said. "They broke into the home ... and they have no legal or ethical defense for their action."
Lawyers for the women argued in court last week that housing is a right and the court should allow the women to possess the house, particularly because of how long it stood vacant and that the alternative would be to send them to the streets.
Assemblyman Ash Kalra, a Democrat from San Jose, said Tuesday that elected officials need to ensure "opportunistic landlords and corporate landlords" don't "keep our homes vacant."
Many Oakland residents say they are being pushed to the fringes of the Bay Area as they struggle to keep pace with housing costs.
Federal officials said last month that an uptick in the country's homeless population was driven entirely by a 16% increase in California, where the median sales price of a home is $500,000.
The situation is so dire that Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom approved a statewide rent cap on some properties.
Yet there are four vacant homes for every homeless person in Oakland, said Leah Simon-Weisberg, an attorney for Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment, which is helping the mothers in court.
The empty eyesores are in devastated, predominantly minority neighborhoods, she said, adding that developers like Wedgewood "acquire the property, they kick the people out who are in it, and they sell it."
Singer said Wedgewood buys distressed properties, hires local workers to fix up the homes and sells them, hopefully to first-time homebuyers.
He said the company will continue with its eviction proceedings against the women if the judge rules in the company's favor, as expected.
This story includes reporting from Terence Chea and Juliet Williams of The Associated Press and KQED's Alice Woelfle