What should I do with furniture a tenant left behind after leaving without any notice?
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What should I do with furniture a tenant left behind after leaving without any notice?
I rented out a house to a man who left the property without notice because of legal issues. He left some belongings and furniture behind. I need to rent out the house to someone else. What can or should I do with the furniture?
Asked on January 2, 2012 under Real Estate Law, Arizona
Answers:
FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
If the estimated value of the left behind furniture from your former tenant is less than $300.00 collectively, then you can dispose of the articles in any manner that you wish by way of leaving on the curb with a "free" sign on them, donating the furniture to charity or tossing the property in the rubbish.
If you have some other address of your former tenant, I would send him or her notice of the need to pick up the items left behind by a certain date. If not, then you can dispose of them. Keep a copy of the letter for future need.
If the items are worth more than $300.00, I would take the property to an offsite storage facility and place it in the name of the former tenant with his or her other address. Send a copy of the location where the property is to the former tenant. If he or she does not pay the storage fee, then the offsite storage company will auction off the property to pay the unpaid rent. Keep a copy of the second letter for future need as well.
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