Tenant's property | storage compliance after move out

[Easton G.]

I have an issue I've not encountered and am unsure how to proceed. This property is a fourplex located in New Mexico. I had a tenant that did not pay on time. I issued a three day notice. The tenant and I made arrangements to meet on the fourth day and do a final walk through as she desired to move out peacefully. The tenant never showed up and I have been unable to reach her via phone/s. She left a number of items in the apartment. The biggest if which is a sofa set. I am having trouble deciding if these items are left as a result of abandonment, lease termination, etc...She wasn't court order evicted which doesn't seem to make it any clearer. The reason I am concerned is that I want to comply with the legal amount of time that I must store her property. It is my understanding that it totally depends on the cause of her vacating. How would you classify her leaving the of the property? I lean toward abandonment which means a 30 day hold of her items. Thanks for your thoughts and expertise.

[Marcia Maynard]

Whenever a tenant indicates to me that they intend to move out, I give them a document that they can sign that makes it a formal notice, from them to me, that they will be vacating and on which date.

Then at the time they turn the unit over, I have them sign another document that I created called "Return of Possession" that makes it extra clear that they have vacated intentionally, not abandoned.  Of course in your situation, since she was a no-show for the final walk-through, that's moot. But if you do manage to connect with her, such might help. I attached it here... you can modify it to meet your own needs and match your locale.

In any case, if your tenant meets the criteria in your jurisdiction for having vacated, or having abandoned, you can move forward and do what is possible under your law.

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RETURN OF POSSESSION & REFUNDS

[Our company name, address and phone number goes here.]

Tenant: ____________________________________________________________

Rental Unit Address: _________________________________________________

The tenant returned possession of the premises (as stated above) to the landlord on the date of ____________________ and attests that they have returned ALL sets of keys to the landlord.

The tenant attests they have removed from the property all personal belongings.If anything was left by the tenant and later found, it shall be stored and/or disposed of by the landlord as per law.

Security Deposit:As per agreement and as required by law (RCW 59.18.280) within twenty-one (21) days after the termination of the rental agreement and vacation of the premises or the landlord’s learning that the property has been abandoned, the landlord shall mail to the tenant’s last known address a full and specific statement of the basis for retaining any of the deposit together with the payment of the refund due the tenant under the terms and conditions of the rental agreement.The tenant paid a security deposit of ___________, which will be considered for this purpose.

New address provided by tenant: ____________________________________

Telephone provided by tenant: _______________________________________

[Landlord signature with date]

[Tenant signature with date]