Verifytenant
  • Home
  • About
    • Services
  • Landlords
    • SmartMove Credit
  • Managers & Realtors
  • Blog
  • Contact Us
  • Resources
  • Member Login

What To Do When A Tenant Leaves Their Belongings Behind

12/1/2019

0 Comments

 
Garbage home
As a landlord, part of the job description involves clearing out the property after your tenants move out. If you’re lucky, you should just be handling trash such as old newspapers, takeout boxes, and other items that belong nowhere but the trash bin. 
Some tenants, however, may leave things of value such as appliances, furniture, and even clothes. While the temptation to throw this out might be hard to ignore, there are certain steps that you need to undergo first to avoid facing serious liability. 

The law may vary from one state to another, but this article may serve as general guidance to your predicament. 

Step 1: Consider the circumstances surrounding your tenant’s departure. 
Handling belongings left by your tenant is often circumstantial. For example, if it’s a simple case of your tenant moving out after his/her lease has expired, most states will generally give you freedom to dispose of any item left behind. On the other hand, if they have vacated the property without due notice, there might be a different approach required. 

Step 2: Revisit your rental agreement.
Your rental contract should involve the handling of property left behind. So before you take action, make sure that you double-check your rental agreement to see if you can throw away their belongings--who knows, maybe you can even go after your former tenants for disposal fees. 

Tip: If your current rental contract does not stipulate anything regarding abandoned property, make sure that you add a clause about it, moving forward. Your legal advisor or lawyer should be able to help you figure out the specification of this additional clause. 

Step 3: Communicate with your former tenant.
If possible, make sure that you check in with your former tenants regarding the properties that they have left behind. Be it a legal notice, a quick phone call, or email communication, they should be given the option to collect their belongings before you get rid of them. Make sure to check your state’s notification requirements. 

Step 4: Handle the disposal of the items left behind. 
If you have gone through all the necessary steps and your tenant still has not returned to claim their belongings, you can now start to think of your disposal options. Unless the state law requires you to surrender the abandoned properties to the state, you might want to consider the following options: 

● Throw the belongings away
While this may be the most obvious choice, clean-up costs can be a little steep. The good news is that this can be legally deducted to the security deposit that your tenant has provided when they moved in. 

● Sell the belongings
Selling off these items is a viable option as well. Make sure to check in with your state as to the handling of the proceeds. 

Handling abandoned property is not always as easy as throwing them in the bin. However, as long as you try to understand rental and tenant laws in your area, you should be able to go about the process smoothly and with minimal monetary risk. 
​This post is provided by Verify Tenant, helping landlords and property managers reduce the risks of renting with fraud prevention tools that include Tenant Screening, Tenant Background Checks, (U.S. ,Canada and International), as well as Criminal Background Checks, and Eviction Reports (U.S. only).
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    May 2021
    January 2021
    April 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    May 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    November 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    July 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    May 2014
    January 2014
    October 2013
    September 2013
    October 2012
    June 2012
    July 2011
    January 2011
    November 2010
    May 2010
    April 2010

    Categories

    All
    Credit Score
    Fico
    Fun
    Identity Theft
    International Criminal
    LAW
    MADISON
    TENANT SCREENING
    Tips
    VerifyTenant
    WISCONSIN

    RSS Feed

    View my profile on LinkedIn
 FAQ|Privacy Policy |Terms & Conditions| Contact Us 



Online Payments
Official PayPal Seal
Picture
Picture
Picture
Copyright (c) 2014 Verify Tenant. All rights reserved.                                                                                                                                                                 
Photos used under Creative Commons from romanboed, StockMonkeys.com, MDGovpics, Tess Aquarium
  • Home
  • About
    • Services
  • Landlords
    • SmartMove Credit
  • Managers & Realtors
  • Blog
  • Contact Us
  • Resources
  • Member Login