Nevada Abandoned Tenant Property Notice

Introduction

Key Things to Know

1. 1

   Nevada's notice of intention to dispose is the second step of a two-stage procedure, not the first. NRS 118A.460(1)(a) requires the landlord to reasonably provide for the safe storage of the property for 30 days after the abandonment or eviction or the end of the rental period. Subsection (1)(b) then allows disposal only if the landlord has made reasonable efforts to locate the tenant, has notified the tenant in writing of the intention to dispose of the property, and 14 days have elapsed since the notice was given. There is no printed form and no list of contents beyond the stated intention to dispose.

2. 2

   The notice must be mailed to the tenant at the tenant's present address, and if that address is unknown, then at the tenant's last known address. Mailing is the only delivery method the subsection names. Because the 14 days run from when the notice was given, the mailing date is the date to record and keep proof of.

3. 3

   Storage is at the tenant's expense but within limits. Under NRS 118A.460(1)(a) the landlord may charge and collect the reasonable and actual costs of inventory, moving and storage before releasing the property to the tenant or an authorized representative rightfully claiming it within the 30-day period. The costs must be both reasonable and actual, and subsection (2) sends any dispute over the amount claimed to the court procedure in subsection 7 of NRS 40.253.

4. 4

   Nevada defines abandoned property in NRS 118A.030 as property left unattended on the premises after the termination of the tenancy, unless the owner of the property has expressed an intent to return for it. For the unit itself, NRS 118A.450 presumes abandonment, absent notice of it, when the tenant is absent for a period equal to one-half the time for periodic rental payments, unless the rent is current or the tenant has notified the landlord in writing of an intended absence.

5. 5

   After both periods the statute lets the landlord dispose of the property and recover his or her reasonable costs out of the property or the value thereof. NRS 118A.460 says nothing about a public sale, advertising, or what happens to any value above the landlord's costs; those questions are not addressed in the section. Vehicles are excluded from this path entirely and must be disposed of in the manner chapter 487 of NRS provides for abandoned vehicles.

6. 6

   Goods left after an eviction follow the same section, with one addition. During the 5-day period following the eviction or lockout of a tenant, NRS 118A.460(3) requires the landlord to provide the former tenant a reasonable opportunity to retrieve essential personal effects, including, without limitation, medication, baby formula, basic clothing and personal care items. A dispute over the reasonableness of the landlord's actions goes to the court under subsection 9 of NRS 40.253.

7. 7

   The procedure is what protects the landlord. Subsection (1) opens by saying the landlord may dispose of the property without incurring civil or criminal liability in the following manner, and (1)(a) limits storage liability to the landlord's negligent or wrongful acts. Outside the procedure, NRS 118A.520 makes a lien on the tenant's household goods for rent unenforceable unless created by attachment or garnishment, abolishes distraint for rent, and makes a landlord who retains household goods or other personal property in violation of that section liable for damages under NRS 118A.390, which allows actual damages, an amount not greater than $2,500 fixed by the court, or both.

Nevada Requirements for Abandoned Tenant Property Notice

• Abandoned Property Under NRS 118A.030 or Goods Left After an Eviction

  Record why NRS 118A.460 applies: property left unattended on the premises after the termination of the tenancy with no expressed intent to return, the NRS 118A.450 presumption of abandonment after an absence of one-half the rental period with rent unpaid and no written notice of absence, or property left on the premises after an eviction. Note the date the tenancy ended, because the 30 days run from it.

• Thirty Days of Safe Storage Before Any Notice

  NRS 118A.460(1)(a) requires the landlord to reasonably provide for the safe storage of the property for 30 days after the abandonment or eviction or the end of the rental period. Log where the goods are, when storage began, and the inventory taken. The landlord is liable to the tenant only for negligent or wrongful acts in storing the property, so a secure location and a dated inventory are the record.

• Reasonable and Actual Costs of Inventory, Moving and Storage

  The landlord may charge and collect the reasonable and actual costs of inventory, moving and storage before releasing the property to the tenant or an authorized representative rightfully claiming it within the 30-day period. Itemize each cost with receipts. Any dispute about the amount may be resolved using the procedure in subsection 7 of NRS 40.253, so the figures should be defensible.

• Reasonable Efforts to Locate the Tenant

  Disposal under NRS 118A.460(1)(b) is conditioned on the landlord having made reasonable efforts to locate the tenant. Record each step taken, such as a forwarding address request, calls to the emergency contact on the application, and any other address the tenant used, before choosing where to mail the notice.

• Written Notice of Intention to Dispose, Mailed to the Present or Last Known Address

  The notice must be in writing and must be mailed to the tenant at the tenant's present address, and if that address is unknown, then at the tenant's last known address. State the intention to dispose of the property and the date after which disposal may occur, and keep proof of the mailing date because the 14 days run from when the notice was given.

• Fourteen Days After the Notice Was Given

  After the 30-day storage period has expired, NRS 118A.460(1)(b) still requires that 14 days have elapsed since the notice was given before the landlord may dispose of the property. Count from the mailing date and do not dispose of anything until both periods have run and the tenant has not claimed the goods.

• Essential Personal Effects in the Five Days After an Eviction or Lockout

  Where the goods were left after an eviction or lockout, NRS 118A.460(3) requires the landlord, during the 5-day period following it, to provide the former tenant a reasonable opportunity to retrieve essential personal effects, including medication, baby formula, basic clothing and personal care items. Document the opportunity offered. Vehicles are handled under chapter 487 of NRS rather than this notice.

• The Disposal Record and Costs Recovered

  After both periods, the landlord may dispose of the property and recover reasonable costs out of the property or the value thereof. NRS 118A.460 prescribes no sale method and says nothing about value above the landlord's costs, so record what was disposed of, how, and the reasonable costs recovered, and keep that record with the inventory and the notice.