Tenant abandonment is a distressing issue that every landlord has to deal with at one time or another. By legal definition, abandonment is said to have taken place if any of the following occurs, viz.
1. The tenant moves out of the property without prior notice.
2. The tenant has not paid rent for more than 2 months.
Although the tenant is inaccessible, it becomes unusually difficult for the landlord to determine whether or not the tenant has actually vacated their premises. Suppose the tenant has gone on a long vacation or has been unable to pay the rent due to unjustified financial problems. In such circumstances, the owner of the land presumes that the lessee has abandoned his premises and enters it; strict legal action would be taken against him under State law. Therefore, abandonment of tenure is a sensitive issue that must be handled very carefully.
How to determine that my tenant has abandoned the property?
Before taking any action against the tenant, it is essential to determine if the latter has permanently moved out of your home or not. You have to make a visit to your property and look for the signs that clearly show that your house has been abandoned. Some of the prominent signs of tenant abandonment are:
o During the past two months, your tenant has not contacted you or paid rent.
o Your house keys have been changed.
o The premises do not have the tenant’s belongings.
o The mailbox is full of letters or does not have any mail.
o The neighbor has seen the tenant move out.
o Despite repeated attempts, you are unable to contact the tenant.
What do I do with the belongings that have been left behind?
According to the law, if the tenant has left his belongings, he must store them properly and return them to the tenant. This is called a bailment when you have temporary custody of your tenant’s possessions. Everything left behind by the tenant can be divided into two categories, lost property and abandoned property. While the first are those things that the tenant has left voluntarily, the second leaves them unintentionally.
For lost property that is something of significant value such as cash or jewelry, you should deposit it with your local police station or Sheriff’s department with a request that records the items, where they were found, and who they belong to. If the police do not locate the owner in 90 days, you can claim the property. For whatever reason, if the police refuse to accept the belongings, then they should be treated as abandoned.
To deal with abandoned property, you must first send a notice to the tenant clearly stating what the possessions are, where you can claim them, how long you can claim them for, what will happen if you don’t claim them, and how much. he has to pay you to take care of the property. If despite the notice, the tenant does not claim his belongings, then selling them is a public sale.
To do this, advertise the sale in the local newspaper. From the proceeds from the sale, recover the cost of advertising and holding the sale, and storing possessions. The remaining amount goes to the county treasurer. If the amount is not claimed for 1 year, you can claim it again.
You are not responsible for lost property, but for abandoned property, the tenant must reclaim their belongings in a timely manner. I would have to pay you the cost of storage. However, if he doesn’t show up for a long period of time, then the property belongs to you.
