How Do You Handle Personal Property Abandoned by a Tenant?

You may handle a tenant's belongings only after you legally have the unit back. Then separate trash from property, inventory what remains, send the written notice your state requires, store the items with reasonable care, and release them when the applicable claim and cost requirements below are met. In California and Florida, unclaimed items can be kept or thrown out only if they are worth less than a set amount ($700 in California, $500 in Florida); anything worth more must be sold at a public sale, with the leftover money sent to the county.

When can you touch the tenant's belongings?

You need legal possession of the unit first. That happens in one of three ways:

1. The tenant moved out and surrendered the unit, usually by returning the keys or telling you in writing they are gone.
2. The unit is legally abandoned. In California, under Civil Code section 1951.3, you may send a notice of belief of abandonment only if rent has been unpaid for at least 14 consecutive days and you reasonably believe the tenant left. The notice sets a termination date at least 15 days after personal delivery or 18 days after mailing, and the tenancy ends then unless the tenant replies before that date in writing that they have not left, with an address for legal service. The unit also cannot be deemed abandoned under this procedure if the tenant proves they paid all or part of the overdue rent during the period from 14 days before the notice through the stated termination date. Belongings in the unit do not, on their own, show the tenant intends to stay.
3. A sheriff or marshal carried out an eviction.

Removing belongings to push a tenant out is an illegal self-help eviction. Florida's prohibited-practices statute allows a landlord to remove a tenant's property only after surrender, abandonment, or a lawful eviction, and sets damages at actual damages or 3 months' rent, whichever is greater.

After an eviction, the rules differ sharply:

• California: after the sheriff's lockout, belongings left behind are locked in the unit. You must take reasonable care of them, either in the unit or in storage. The writ of possession already gives the tenant 15 days after you take possession to reclaim them by paying reasonable storage costs. Give separate reclaim notices to anyone other than the tenant you reasonably believe owns the items, unless the tenant-requested return procedure described below has begun or been completed. Once the applicable claim periods expire, follow the sale or disposal rules below; no additional tenant notice period is required.
• Florida: under section 83.62, once the sheriff executes the writ of possession, you may move the tenant's property to or near the property line, and you are not liable for its loss or damage after removal.

For the eviction process itself, see the steps for eviction proceedings and whether to handle an eviction yourself.

Separate trash from property and take an inventory

Neither the California nor the Florida statute defines trash, so discard right away only what no one would reasonably want back, such as food waste and empty boxes. Anything with resale value or personal value goes on a written list: furniture, electronics, clothing, tools, photos, and paperwork. California presumes the tenant owns any records left behind, such as tax papers or letters, so treat them as property, not trash.

For the inventory:

• List each item or group of items with enough detail that the owner could recognize it.
• Describe a locked, tied, or sealed container as a container; both California and Florida allow this without opening it.
• Photograph or video each room before you move anything, and have a second person present if you can.
• Estimate the total resale value, because the value decides whether you can dispose of unclaimed items or must sell them.

Vehicles follow separate rules; see what to do if tenants leave behind motor vehicles.

Send the notice to reclaim

California (Civil Code sections 1980 to 1991) and Florida (Statutes chapter 715) use nearly the same notice:

In both states, if you have reason to believe notice sent to the last known address will not reach the recipient, also deliver or mail it to another known address where they can reasonably be expected to receive it.

The protection these statutes give you covers only items described in the notice, so list everything you plan to store, sell, or discard. Other states set their own notice periods and value limits; check yours before you discard anything.

What can you charge before returning the items?

Return items to a tenant who claims them within the applicable period. The costs you may require before release depend on the state and timing:

• California: you may charge the reasonable cost of storage. If you store the items in the unit, the charge is the fair rental value of the space they reasonably need, and you may not charge at all if the tenant reclaims items left in the unit within two days of moving out. If the tenant asks in writing within 18 days of moving out, before you start the notice process, you must give a written, itemized demand for removal and storage costs within five days, and the tenant picks up within 72 hours of paying.
• Florida: you may charge reasonable storage and advertising costs even when the tenant reclaims the items by the notice deadline. Your notice must say storage costs may be charged.

In both states, if the reclaim notice says the property will be sold at a public sale, you must still release it to the former tenant who claims it before it is sold and pays the reasonable storage, advertising, and sale costs already incurred. This right continues after the notice deadline.

Neither state's permitted reclamation charges include unpaid rent. Deduct rent from the security deposit, which still has its own refund deadline, or sue for it. When a tenant asks for the items back, set a pickup time in writing and have the tenant sign a receipt listing what they took.

Selling or disposing of unclaimed items

If the applicable claim periods expire without the items being reclaimed, you may proceed below, subject to the former tenant's right to reclaim before sale when the reclaim notice announces a public sale:

• Under the threshold: if you reasonably believe the total resale value is under $700 in California or $500 in Florida, you may keep the items or dispose of them any way you choose.
• Over the threshold: sell them at a public sale by competitive bidding. In California, publish notice in a local newspaper of general circulation once a week for two successive weeks, with the last publication at least five days before the sale. In Florida, advertise once a week for two consecutive weeks, with the sale at least 10 days after the first publication and at least five days after the last.
• The proceeds: subtract your storage, advertising, and sale costs. Pay any balance to the county treasury within 30 days of the sale; the owner can claim it from the county within one year. You cannot apply the balance to unpaid rent.

Florida also lets a lease shift storage duties: if the rental agreement includes the statutory notice that the landlord is not responsible for storing or disposing of property after surrender or abandonment, you are not liable for that property.

For the broader steps at the end of a tenancy, see the procedure for moving out and general ways to end a tenancy agreement.