What Constitutes Abandonment?

Question

I'm a little perplexed on a situation I have not encountered before. I know the obvious answer is to consult an atty. However in this case consulting an atty, going through eviction, costs etc doesn't seem necessary. I have been unable to have any sort of direct contact with my tenant in 9 weeks. I have tried every imaginable way to contact her and the best I could do is talk to her mom who supposedly spoke for her her but shielded her from direct contact. She has basically been absent from the apartment for two months. Finally after getting nowhere in contacting I posted a termination of lease notice on her front door the beginning of June. Her mom assured me she would be out by then. She has paid until the end of June. On 7/1 I entered the apt to find nothing but toys, leftover food, and random clothing strewn about. Also the tub was full of dirty pots and pans with many fruit flies. There was no beds, sofas, linens or any of the things constituting daily living. At this point following the rules I posted a '10 day notice of abandonment'. In that 10 day period time she did not return and I was not contacted. As of 7/11, I photographed the apt then I removed and stored all her belongings. Yesterday the new tenant moved in. Last night at 10:30 at night the old tenant just walked through the door and threatened my new people. She is claiming I need to evict despite lease end and her not living there. I called the state police and the situation is still fluid. Does anyone have a similar story and accompanying resolution?

Michelle Fenn · Answer

Just had this happen in the past couple months.   The tenants tenancy was terminated.   The upstairs tenant informed us that the down unit occupants moved out at the end of March.  We contacted the tenant and she claimed to be living there and stopped paying rent.  We filed for eviction.  She showed up in "zoom" court hearing and claimed to still be living there, she also claimed she could not understand English.  Funny she could swear at me proficiently in English and Spanish.   The judge gave her an extension and scheduled an interpreter.  She never showed up for the next hearing.  The eviction was granted by Cleveland housing court that boasts it's 93% reduction in evictions.   With our housing court judge I can just imagine the fines if we would claimed abandonment and locked her out.

Nathan Gesner · Answer

My state allows me to consider a rental abandoned if the tenant has been "gone" for 15 days and owes unpaid rent. You need to check your state laws, but it sounds like you've done the right thing so far by giving notice, attempting to communicate, documenting the condition left, etc.

The tenant is unlikely to sue you for anything. You have a choice of ignoring her or responding with some facts to show her that you're not going to be pushed around. Let her know how many times you attempted to communicate, when you posted notice, the date you entered, etc. Don't bother sending her copies of letters or pictures because she may find something to use against you. I also recommend letting her know that if she intends to come after you, then you will respond by charging her for any unpaid rent, cleaning and repairs, moving and storage, plus court costs. That will probably shut her up.

When someone abandons a property, you can usually tell from the items left behind. It's usually broken/old furniture, a 1992 TV set that weighs 78 pounds, rotten food, dirty dishes, and kid toys.

Greg M. · Answer

It is possible you just did an illegal eviction.

When was the lease set to end? Was it month-to-month? Did you follow the law and give her the require number of days for non-renewing?

Joe Splitrock · Answer

@John Garman what you described isn't even abandonment. You gave her notice of non-renewal and she moved out. There is only a few loose ends:

1. You need to get her belongings returned. If she is talking to you or her mom is willing to talk to you, setup a time to get them out of storage. Look up state abandoned property laws to see how long you need to keep them. Just explain to her that you will only be holding the items until X date per state law.

2. Security deposit needs to be returned minus deductions. You need to send to current address or last known address. If she refuses to give you a new address, send it to her old address. Include a detailed letter with any deductions and a check for the balance. Unless she did serious damage, you probably can't justify keeping the entire amount. Send it certified mail and ask your tenants to reject the letter since they are not the occupants. There is a chance that she forwarded mail and it may go to her new address.

3. If the old tenant is still getting mail at the old address, tell the tenants to write "return to sender" on the envelope and put it back in the mailbox.

4. Put up a Ring camera today and tell the tenants to keep their door locked. Cover the cost of the camera and one year of premium monitoring. This is for your tenants protection and liability reasons to show you being a responsible landlord.

5. If you do talk to the police, refer to her only as an old tenant. Suggest she may be physiologically unstable or on drugs. There is no other reason she would be acting like this. She was given notice and moved out. She moved all her stuff out, wasn't sleeping there, doesn't have a key, doesn't pay the utilities anymore and didn't pay July rent.

If everything you described in your original message was accurate, you should be fine.

Odds are good she was just slow at moving her crap out. She probably walked in thinking all her junk would be there and was shocked to see someone else living there. Most likely she will go away, although make sure she gets her belongings and any remaining security deposit. Sometimes it is good to send some money back. When she cashes the check, that is acknowledgement of receipt. Then she can't accuse you of not returning deposit. It is also hard to argue she is still a tenant if she cashed her security deposit return check and never paid July rent.

Jeffrey Donis · Answer

@John Garman I agree with @Gail K.. I'd change the locks so she can't get in again, and let her mother know that she no longer lives in the unit.

Gail K. · Answer

Rules can vary from state to state (and your state is not mentioned).   However, it would appear you covered all bases (i.e., posting the notice of abandonment, attempting to make contact with this tenant, discussing matters with only person who would speak with you (mom), taking photos of what the place looked like.  Were the utilities on or off when you went through there?

It's always a good idea to change the locks between tenants (you indicate this person just walked through the door).

Some landlords will go through the eviction process before attempting to rent again just to make sure the property is legally back under their control.  This used to be easier to do before the eviction moratorium; in some states judges aren't even willing to hear these cases.

I'd apologize to the new tenants, change the locks and if the former tenant shows up again, tell her to get off your property or the law will be called on her.

If she wants to pursue legal action against you (claiming an "illegal eviction") your pictures, history of attempts to contact, etc. will be your evidence that you covered your bases regarding this matter.

Gail

Scott M. · Answer

You 100% need to proceed to the obvious answer.  Yes, we do have experience with this but we follow the rules that were given to us by our attorney.  About 10 things we need to do to make sure a home has been abandoned and even then you are still at risk if you don't evict.  This is always a case of if you are not 100% sure you are 0% sure and are in fact taking a risk.  Not saying the risk isn't worth taking but in this case the risk may have not paid off.  May have as given your story I doubt much will be done and you can probably get this behind you quick.  But do the obvious answer.

Theresa Harris · Answer

Did the old tenant take her name off the utilities before the 1st of July? The fact that you cleaned everything up after the 10 days' notice and nothing had changed during that time, she hadn't paid the rent AND all of the furniture had been moved out, I would have done the same as you. If she threatens them, tell them to call the police.

If her mom was shielding her from contact, there could be other things going on.

John Garman · Answer

@Nathan G. Definitely appreciate the input!! All the items you described were there except the giant tv's, just empty flat screen holders drilled into walls. I've never seen a tub full of pots and pans, many fruit flies buzzing around!

John Garman · Answer

Hey Joe, First I'm impressed with this community and how supportive it is. I apologize to the others on this thread I have not addressed specifically, honestly I'm still learning the ropes here. I have a couple comments/questions in return:

1. She has been there just 4 months. Two weeks after she moved in her boyfriend was arrested in the apartment. Several holes in walls from taser barbs (I assume this because the neighbor heard the police say they 'we will shoot'.) Also they broke the door down, requiring all new frame and door, paint etc which was done immediately. I billed her my cost of the door at the time which she said she would pay but has not. Now I have repaired all the holes, (taser, along with many nails and screws), repainted, and thorough cleaning. Given the $800 security deposit I'm struggling to see where I can write her a check. I completely see your point. Given all this would you still make it a point to give something back?

2. After talking more at length with the new tenant I found out the person who entered was not the 'old tenant' at all but her sister. She introduced herself by old tenants name but unbeknownst to her the new tenants new that wasn't the case and told her so. Someone then left a long note about coming back with the cops and bringing charges of home invasion and criminal burglary. I think you are correct about being on drugs because what doesn't seem to be understood here is that it's not the new tenants with whom the quarrel is but with me. If she does return is she not trespassing?

I appreciate the lengthy feedback and look forward to hearing back   - John

What Constitutes Abandonment?

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