Should a Landlord Rekey Property When The Tenants Move?
Question
A tenant gave notice by phone on 9/25 that everything would be moved out on 9/29 and appears to have not returned to the property since at least 9/27. However, the keys and garage door opener have not been returned or left on the premises and there is some trash left on the property. Also, some of the rent was paid for the month but not all. Do I have to worry about whether I can rekey the locks and begin cleaning the unit?
Answer
The following discussion includes modified excerpts from articles I have previously written on the subject of your question.
The issue is whether or not possession has been returned to you. This in turn depends on the intent of the tenant, clauses in your lease agreement, the law of the state, and what events have occurred that might prove the tenant did not plan to return to the property.
Events that prove that the tenant intended to return possession to the landlord can include (1) termination of the lease term where the lease agreement does not provide for automatic renewal or the tenant did not meet the conditions stated in the lease agreement for staying beyond the term end, (2) and what the tenant stated when giving notice of intent to have vacated, with the latter being provable, and (3) return of the keys and other such items such as garage door openers.
Some states have statutes that specify procedures the landlord should follow when not certain that the tenant has abandoned the rental premises. This may include posting of a notice on the property for a certain period before taking possession.
Obvious trash or garbage that no one could possibly want to reclaim can certainly be disposed of without causing any problems. The landlord must be cautious regarding the disposal of tenant personal property when it is not clear that the tenant intended to abandon it.
In order to reduce the uncertainly regarding items left on the premises it is of benefit to include a lease clause stating that any items left on the premises beyond the date of termination of tenancy shall be considered abandoned and may be disposed of as the landlord sees fit without contact with the tenant. Abandoned property laws of many states might have priority over such lease clauses, but such clauses can still have value before judges. Even if that isn’t certain, the clauses will likely discourage tenants from pursuing the matter to begin with.
In most cases, a landlord can reasonably decide that the tenant intended to relinquish possession However, under certain circumstances the landlord should consider consulting with a competent attorney who is knowledgeable and experienced in the particular subjects of possession before taking possession of the rental unit.
Regarding unpaid rent and/or any damages, if not fully covered by the security deposit, you will need to serve notice on the ex-tenant regarding the amounts owed and demand payment. This demand can be included in the written accounting required for unreturned security deposit amounts by statutes of almost all states. If the ex-tenant did not provide you with a forwarding address, you should mail the accounting and demand to the address of the property, hoping that the tenant has provided the forwarding address to the post office. If no forwarding address has been provided to the post office, there are numerous ways to find the ex-tenant. The fact that a person has moved to another state does not prevent collection of a judgment as long as you can have the tenant served with a summons and complaint.
Further discussion of collecting from such ex-tenants is beyond the scope of this answer, but we provide lengthy discussions regarding the subject in our eCourse titled “Collecting Judgments” and in our Mini Training Guide titled “9 Steps to Collecting a Judgment.”