Cleaning Up After A Tenant Has Moved Out

Your tenant has just moved out, vacating your rental property. Everything kosher and above board so far, however, what is not good is that he / she has not paid last month’s rent, and has taken the keys to the property, including leaving behind his / her personal belongings in the garage. You would like to rent out your property again, but do not know what to do with the tenant’s bits and pieces.

However much, you wish to throw his / her things out, resist the impulse for the time being. Unfair though it may seem, in order to stay on the right side of the law and as is the rule in many states, the landlord cannot just remove a tenant’s belongings from his / her premises, without first determining the value of the abandoned property. If, it is found to be worth something, the landlord must trace the tenant and inform him / her that he / she intends to sell it, unless the tenant claims it.

Often, such situations may turn out to be more than a little complicated and can turn ugly. It is, more than worthwhile, to learn the ins and outs of every tenant / landlord related issue, especially, as future tenants can pull similar stunts. The last thing any landlord wants is to find himself / herself sued for ‘destruction of property’, simply because, you disposed off the abandoned property, without adhering to state law.