Arizona Abandoned Tenant Property Notice

Introduction

Key Things to Know

1. 1

   Arizona's notice for goods left behind comes in two parts under A.R.S. 33-1370. The first is the notice of abandonment in subsection A, sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, and posted for five days. The second, in subsection D, follows once the landlord has retaken the unit: an inventory of what remained and a notice of where it is stored and what storage costs, delivered in the same way. Neither has a printed form, but both delivery methods are mandatory.

2. 2

   Abandonment has a fixed meaning in subsection J. Either the tenant has been absent at least seven days without notice to the landlord, rent is outstanding and unpaid for ten days, and nothing other than the tenant's belongings suggests anyone is living there; or the tenant has been absent at least five days, rent is five days unpaid, and none of the tenant's belongings are in the unit. Outside those facts, subsection 33-1370 is not the tool.

3. 3

   The fourteen calendar days in subsection F run from the date the landlord retakes possession, which itself cannot be earlier than five days after the abandonment notice was both posted and mailed. During the fourteen days the landlord must use reasonable care in moving and holding the goods, and may keep them in the abandoned unit, another available unit, landlord-owned storage space, or off the premises if no unit or storage space is available.

4. 4

   Storage is not a lock on everything. Subsection F denies the tenant access until actual removal and storage costs are paid in full, but with an exception: clothing, the tools, apparatus and books of a trade or profession, and identification or financial documents, including those about immigration status, employment status, public assistance or medical care, must be released without that payment. A tenant who gives written notice before the sale has five days to reclaim the rest, paying only removal and storage for the period stored.

5. 5

   Arizona sets no dollar threshold. Instead subsection F lets the landlord destroy or otherwise dispose of some or all of the goods if it reasonably determines their value is so low that the cost of moving, storing and conducting a public sale would exceed what a sale would bring. Perishables and plants need not be stored at all, and items that are contaminated, a biohazard or a health and safety risk may be removed and disposed of at the landlord's discretion.

6. 6

   After the fourteen days, the landlord may donate the goods to a qualifying charitable organization under section 43-1088 or another recognized charity, or sell them. Any tax benefit from a donation belongs to the tenant. Sale proceeds go first to outstanding rent and costs covered by the lease or the statutes, and the excess is mailed to the tenant's last known address. For twelve months after a sale the landlord keeps records of the unpaid rent and the sale and holds any excess returned as undeliverable.

7. 7

   Subsection I is the exception to all of this. Where the tenant returns the keys and belongings remain in the unit, the landlord may immediately remove and dispose of them without liability, unless the landlord and tenant have agreed in writing to some other treatment. Abandoned animals follow their own track: after notifying the person the tenant authorized to retrieve them under section 33-1314, and one calendar day without retrieval, they may be released to a shelter or boarding facility.

Arizona Requirements for Abandoned Tenant Property Notice

• Facts Meeting One of the Two Subsection J Definitions

  Record the dates of absence, the rent outstanding and for how long, and whether any of the tenant's belongings remain. Subsection J requires either seven days' absence with rent ten days unpaid and no evidence of occupancy other than the belongings, or five days' absence with rent five days unpaid and no belongings in the unit.

• Whether the Keys Were Returned, and Any Written Agreement About Belongings

  Under subsection I, if the tenant returned the keys and belongings remain, the landlord may immediately remove and dispose of them without liability unless the parties agreed in writing to other treatment. Note how and when the keys came back and check the lease and move-out papers for such an agreement before using either track.

• The Notice of Abandonment by Certified Mail and Five-Day Posting

  Send it by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the last known address and any alternate address known to you, and post it on the door or another conspicuous place for five days. The landlord may retake the unit five days after the notice has been both posted and mailed. Keep the receipts and a dated photograph of the posting.

• The Inventory and the Notice of Storage Location and Cost

  After retaking possession with belongings still inside, prepare an inventory and notify the tenant of where the goods are stored and what storage costs, delivered the same way as the abandonment notice. Subsection E allows storage in the abandoned unit, another available unit, landlord-owned storage, or off the premises if neither is available.

• The Fourteen Calendar Day Hold, Counted From Retaking

  Hold the goods for fourteen calendar days after the date you retook possession, using reasonable care in moving and holding them. A tenant who gives written notice on or before the sale or disposal date gets five days to reclaim. Disposal before the fourteen days, or after a tenant's offer to pay, exposes the landlord to return of the goods or damages under subsection H.

• The Items Released Without Payment

  Clothing, the tools, apparatus and books of a trade or profession, and identification or financial documents, including those related to immigration status, employment status, public assistance or medical care, must be released without first paying removal and storage costs. For everything else, release within five days after a written offer to pay, on tender of the removal and storage costs for the period stored.

• The Cost-Versus-Proceeds Judgment and the Excluded Items

  Arizona has no dollar threshold. Disposal without sale is allowed where the landlord reasonably determines the value is so low that moving, storing and a public sale would cost more than a sale would bring. Perishables and plants need not be stored; contaminated, biohazard and health-and-safety items may be removed and disposed of. Photograph and inventory first.

• The Donation or Sale Record, and Twelve Months of Records

  Record a donation to a qualifying charitable organization under section 43-1088 or another recognized charity, noting that any tax benefit belongs to the tenant, or record the sale and apply proceeds to outstanding rent and covered costs. Mail the excess to the tenant's last known address and, for twelve months after the sale, keep records and hold any excess returned as undeliverable.