Property Abandonment - Landlord Forum thread 332437

Property Abandonment by Anonymous on March 21, 2015 @20:30

Tenants had not paid since January. It is expensive to file here, (just raised in Jan this year)and we have been busy with medical problems, so did not have a chance to file, had given them a 3 day notice and spoke to the Father of the boy about having them move. Then the 6th of the month they had electric and propane turned off for non-payment. We thought now they will move but instead they took their clothes, changed the lock and had all curtains pulled plus left a dog that they did not have previously in the utility room and opened and old dryer vent so the dog could get out to enclosed porch. They left the dog there for a week and it got really hot on the 12th and I took water over for the poor thing. I could see by the amount he drank that it had been out of water. When they picked up the dog they forgot to lock the patio door which is how I got in to determine if it was abandoned. The house was filled with bags of empty soda and liquor bottles, stuff all over the floor including snack foods and dirty dishes in the sink and dishes with food on them. Plus they left all the food in the double refrigerator that we had in the unit and in a spare refrigerator that they had on the enclosed porch plus the enclosed porch is filled with trash the dog tore up.
I have filled out the abandonment paperwork and will serve it on his Dad On Tues, 3/24 when I go to town (who vouched for him in the beginning) as I have no way of knowing where they are and I believe he lost his job because he was home a lot the last month they were actually living there.
My main concern is getting the trash, soda bottles, liquor bottles and dirty dishes (that means throwing them in the dumpster food and all as it is too nasty to do otherwise) and food on the floor thrown out as so there is no mouse or roach problem caused. Can I do that legally before the period of the abandonment runs it course. And can I change the lock so they cannot lock us out again. There was no written agreement as they were suppose to get a PO Box and viable phone when they moved in.They only had a cell phone that worked in Fresno and did not work in the foothills where we live and have the rental. I am sure they did this on purpose in hindsight. Please someone in CA. tell me if they have had this problem and what they did.

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Re: Property Abandonment by Anonymous on March 21, 2015 @21:09	[ Reply ]

Wow - that is some post! I won't go into the fact that your message is unreadable as that's stating the obvious. But I would advise that if you want help, be succinct. Nobody wants to read a page of rambling with no structure.

Re: Property Abandonment by CCRider (CA) on March 22, 2015 @01:14	[ Reply ]

It's not expensive to file for eviction in CA. You can do it through small claims court. But, honestly, if it was me, I'd just take over the place - change the locks and clean it out. They will have to sue you to get back in, and I really doubt that will happen. And if they do, then deal with it. If that makes you too nervous, since you already gave them a 3 day notice and they didn't comply, then take the next step for evictions through the small claims court. What you can do about the junk, though, is post a 3 day notice telling them to remove garbage from the place, because it is creating a habitability issue due to pests and odors, and possibly damaging floors, etc. Then post a 24 hour notice to enter to remove the garbage because they didn't. At least then you get rid of the garbage, legally, while waiting for your court date.

Re: Property Abandonment by Anonymous on March 22, 2015 @08:11	[ Reply ]

Unpaid rent. Utilities not on. No fresh food in refrigerator. No one is staying there. This is abandonment. My state says seven days, and a landlord has the right to declare abandonment and enter. Hang a 24 hour notice to enter, and then get moving. You can check your state's laws concerning abandonment, either with as attorney, or to the right of this site. Don't wait, or you are going to be dealing with flesa, rodents, or other vermin as well as the mess you are facing.