Legally what canI do to get rid of my ex-roommate’s furniture?
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Legally what canI do to get rid of my ex-roommate’s furniture?
I am the only signer on my lease; everything is in my name. My roommate moved in for 3 1/2 weeks and then moved out without letting me know. She took only her clothes and left all of her furniture and her dog. Legally what can I do? She hasn’t paid me anything for living with me and I told her that she had to pay $200 to get her stuff back. Is there any possibilty I can get in trouble with the law for that? Also, when is it OK for me to throw her stuff out?
Asked on August 11, 2011 Texas
Answers:
FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
Under the laws of most states, if a roommate or tenant "abandons" property, the landlord is required to send written notice to the owner at that person's last known address advsing that the left behind items need to be picked up by a certain date with a statement as to where they are located, and if not, they will be considered abandoned.
If the items are not picked up by that date, the landlord, or you have the following options:
1. if the items left behind are worth less than $300 or so in your opinion, they can be discarded, sold or given to charity;
2. if worth more than $300, they need to be auctioned off with notice to the owner.
The best way to get rid of the items after proper notice has been sent to the former roommate by you where you keep a copy of the notice for future reference is to have the belongings placed in an offsite storage facility under her name. Give written notice to the former roommate of where the items are and the need for her to pay the storage fees.
If she fails to do so, the storage company will auction off the contents to pay unpaid storage fees. This results in less work for you.
Good luck.
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