Tenant Abandonment In Park City Property Management
Every now and then, despite your best efforts at tenant screening and being a quality landlord in Park City property management, you will have a tenant that abandons a property. Sometimes they may tell you they are leaving, sometimes they may not. There are some differences between the two types of abandonment but there are also a lot of similarities. So what can you as a landlord do when a tenant bails? Let's take a look at the two different scenarios and what a landlord can do in Park City property management.
Abandoned Premises
Utah law has specific provisions for a tenant abandoning a premises, if you want to read the code yourself you can go here. As will all legal matters if you are unsure you should consult an attorney and I am not an attorney. The key first step in determining an abandon premises is if the rent is 15 days late. Once the 15 days has lapsed and there is either no reasonable evidence that the tenant is occupying the premises, whether they have left personal property behind or not, a property can be considered abandoned in Park City property management. If there is personal property left behind a landlord can have the property removed and must store it. If the property has not been claimed by the tenant after 15 days the landlord may sell the property to offset costs for moving and storage or donate the property to a charity. Once the personal property has been removed the landlord can attempt to re-rent the property. A tenant would be liable for the term of the lease, any unpaid rent up until a new tenant is found, reasonable commission or fee for renting property, plus any storage or moving fees and any damaged done ot the property.
Tenant Provides Notice
Sometimes in Park City property management when a tenant unexpectedly moves before the lease is up they may notify you beforehand. Hopefully this is done with enough time for you to begin touring the property and securing a new tenant before the current tenant moves out. This can really help make the best of a bad situation. If they tenant does not notify you ahead of time that they are leaving they are really making things worse on themselves. As in the situation with an abandoned premises the tenant is still responsible for rent up until the day a new tenant is found. If they are smart they will give you as much time as possible to find a new tenant or better yet refer a good tenant to you. If a tenant has an unexpected job transfer or family emergency that causes them to move and they proactively contact you about their situation you can really minimize costs for both yourself and the tenant.
Collection Options
If a tenant is left with unpaid rent I would recommend you turn the matter over to a collection agency once a total cost has been established. In order to do this you will need to keep accurate records and have proper lease and application information to provide to the agency. Submitting a collection my cost nothing or you may be required to pay a small fee. But trust me you are better off focusing on moving forward with your Park City property management operation and allowing the dirty work of collecting from former tenants be left to those who understand the legal aspect of collections.
If you would like more information on dealing with tenant abandonment, or further information about Park City property management in general click the link below for a free consultation. You will receive valuable information specific to your property that will help you make an informed decision. You will also receive a free, no-obligation quote on our property management services. At CC Realty we specialize in making investment property ownership a trouble free experience. Please contact us today for your free consultation
