With almost every tenant of mine that moves out, they always leave worthless junk behind that has to be disposed of.

How do you deal with this problem? Do you load your truck with this junk and take it to the dump yourself or do you hire it out?

In my situation, if I put this junk on the street curb, the local scavengers will come and make a huge mess of it. Then I have to hire someone to clean up the mess made by the scavengers.

Again, how do YOU dispose of worthless junk left by your tenants? (used tires, car batteries, motor oil, broken kitchen appliances, bed mattresses and clothes that stink really bad, etc. etc.).

Ken,

I have people who I hire clean out rental houses. However, all they can do is remove the junk from the house and put it in the driveway. They do not have the means (truck) to haul it off to the local dump site though. This is what this post is all about.

I devide it into categories.

1. True junk...I load up truck and haul off.

2. Craigslist junk...people will buy the junk at a cheap price.

3. Scrap metal I horde until I have enough to take to scrap yard.

Barbara,

I wish you would tell me the difference between True Junk and CL junk. Give me some examples of each category.

If you have a multi unit or warehouse somewhere, it's worth getting a 3-4 yard weekly emptied dumpster.

NE,

I call a $10/hr grunt labor guy, tell them to empty the house and bag up the trash. It gets trucked away to the local dump (aka the convenience station) for about $7/load for a truck, $11/load for a truck + trailer; and $5/tire.

Then I ding the security deposit.

Not sure about the bagster. I throw anything in my dumpster except tires. There's a fire place here that takes them for $2 a tire, so not a big deal. Maybe something like that near you.

AllyM,

Sounds like another (famous) Rocket Science Project.

NE,

"With almost every tenant of mine that moves out, they always leave worthless junk behind that has to be disposed of."

I've got a 10 yard dump trailer. Often at move-out, I have a lot of garden trimmings because I prune at that time.

If there is junk left, it gets sorted. Decent stuff for thrift stores, the thrift store will often send someone to pick it up, except then someone has to be there to meet them, so I usually take it to them. I support the humane society thrift store.

Trash goes to the dump. Hazardous waste and appliances also go to the dump with an extra fee. If there is good metal, I set that aside.

I really wish it was legal - once they leave, and they leave anything, that we could load it up and take it and put it in their front yard or behind their car.

Why do we have to clean up after them? I mean I know it is bound to happen.... but...

In Iowa, I have always been told we have to store it for 30 days and then we can get rid of it. My 30 days starts when they move and I have a single garage I put it in... then gone it goes. Now if for some reason, I thought they said "can you deliver" i do and charge them a delivery fee on their deposit return.

Is this something that happens in "Type C" houses?

I've not had much trouble with garden sheds, but basements are another story. I've had a marijuana grow in a basement. I've had tenants sublet the basement, and I've had tenants leave stuff in a basement.

The big problem with junk left in a basement is that it all has to be hauled up a narrow staircase. I suspect that is why so much of it gets left. It is extra work to remove it.

Hire it done. I will not say on my deathbed, "Gee, I wish I would have spent more days hauling ratty couches and disintegration Wal-Mart furriness out the front door."

We have the benefit of dumpsters in the alley. City service that includes water, sewer, and trash service.

The larger stuff (furniture) I can put on the curb and call the city and they will send a boom dump to pick it up.

In California (who would have guessed) we must inventory the junk, notify the X-tenant and store for 18 days. After 18 days if the value is below $700 we can pitch. Over $700 we must hold an auction and divy up the income after deducting expenses.

In California (who would have guessed) we must inventory the junk, notify the X-tenant and store for 18 days. After 18 days if the value is below $700 we can pitch. Over $700 we must hold an auction and divy up the income after deducting expenses.

Fish stick, we used to have that ( 30 day storage). Very glad that is gone.

When I have a tenant storing junk in garage or basement, DURING the tenancy, I offer to haul it off in my pick up truck. I just ask they bring it up stairs and outside. From garage, I can get anything out. Reciprocating saw and knowledge of physics, I can load and unload most anything. My city recently added a fee for ‘tipping’ (dropping off at the city site, but if it’s brought in a car, no fee. I can haul a lot cut into chunks.

Amazingly, this seems to encourage the tenants to clear more out on their own, AND, also encourages them to better enjoy the spaces while they live there.

Sure, this takes some time, but, I am amazed at how if I haul one mattress, tenant gets motivated to start clearing out more on their own. I also put in my newsletter places they can take still useable items. My favorite place to recommend is Teen Challenge, a drug and alcohol treatment program. Also, our city allows curbside pick up of one item outside of the garbage bin, about the size of a side chair or coffee table, and I occasionally mention that in my newsletter.

Sometimes when one of my class "C" tenants leaves due to an eviction, they leave lots of junk behind. The do this for a reason! The X-tenant wants to claim I never gave them a chance to retrieve their "valuable" belongings and then files a case in small claims court against me.

Then in court the tenant has "old" pictures of when they first got their "junk", with no time/date stamp on their pictures. Judges believe the tenants an want to rule against owners.

So during the Sheriff's lockout from the eviction, I take pictures of the Sheriff (excluding their face's) with the "Junk" in piss-poor-condition. The eviction papers have the sheriff's name and badge numbers which correspond with the badges and ID in the pictures. So I can prove the tenants stuff was worse than "junk".

This way my counter suit for the 1 month's storage and disposal has merit.

Clean out I hire labor for if more than a can or two. I've only used a "trash out" service once, and got totally ripped off. Though I've never really had a hoarder house like on TV that needs roll offs.

Here we get 6 free bulk pickups a year, so we just put it curbside. They come with a dumpster and two guys to load it. We redid a place a few years ago and had a big pile, mostly in sacks. The trash guys refilled the dumpster 4 or 5 times. Would have cost me several hundred to dump it.

Old haz mat stuff, oil, paint, etc., we save for the city's recovery day.

Other "good" stuff we curb outside our shop, which is on a busy feeder street. It usually disappears within minutes! I once put out a decent king bed headboard and night stands. Literally in 30 seconds several folks were pulling over, it was gone in like 5 minutes! LOL

When we were flipping in CA we usually paid for a roll off and any junk went with the demo and yard trash.

Sid said, "Meanwhile, tighten up your screening".

Chime in.

Is there anyone else out there,

who doesn't understand what Sid said ?

Exactly, Ken. We haven't had a tenant leave crap behind in YEARS. Although I know RB doesn't believe me LOL!

MAYBE some cleaning supplies although the lease specifically says take them with you.

For the record,

I am in agreement with Sid.

Ken, Sid and other screening gurus,

You can not put tires in the trash - dumpster. However, if you take a knife or recep saw and cut around the sidewalls then you CAN put it in the trash.

Ken,

I understand what you are talking about. However, my point is all tenants (even the good ones that screen well) leave something behind for me to deal with. With good tenants, if they have an old stove, frig or W/D that dies and quits working, they will usually leave it in the house or garage when they vacate. They are not going to pay someone to come pick it up and haul it off for them.

My post here has nothing to do with screening applicants. All I wanted to know is how other LL's deal with junk that gets left behind by their tenants.

Roy, great question regarding true junk vs. Craigslist junk. I don't have an answer! I have sold couches that had burns, stains, rips and just flat out gross. Worse case scenario is at the end of clean up I take a second trip to the dump. Best case scenario someone pays me to remove trash!

Barbara,

How much did someone pay you for a couch that had cigarette burns, urine stains and rips in it? Maybe I am missing out on an opportunity here. How much will the average CL scavenger pay for usable junk no matter how gross it is?

Roy, I asked $25 for the couch. However their awesome negotiating skills were able to talk me down to $20.

At one point, my son bought a house and the seller left with only his clothing. He left everything else, none of which had any value.

I put an ad in the penny saver that said Free Garage Sale, everything is free.

You wouldn't believe the junk that people took. Broken furniture, a moldy crinkly old shower curtain, a broken mirror, musty carpet pieces, rusty pots and pans, rotted lumber.....

Roy,

We keep a roll off dumpster at a certain project house. This eliminates cross county trips to the dump.

Helpers can off load a simple utility trash trailer with a short drive to the dumpster, not the 30 minutes out and 30 minutes back from the dump.

We set the metal on the curb and it disappears. My son-in-law would post a CURB ALERT on CL for the metal or anything salvageable. He did that when I was dragging a broken vanity to the curb and a guy drove up to snag it before I got it to the curb!

Also, we send move out checklists and charge $50 /hour to clean and haul. This stopped a lot of junk and gives us much better turnovers.

BRAD

PS

On occasion we have DELIVERED the pile to their new home. We take a photo to prove we did not harm it during transport.

My EMERGENCY CONTACTS sheet gives me authorization to make deliveries to their friends and family.

Ken,

Good thought. Nice to know someone reads my replies!

They sign the form which states:

'If I(we) are unavailable I(we) authorize these trusted persons to accept messages, notices, court documents, and deliveries on my behalf.'

All adults sign the form.

We've only delivered goods a few times, not a single complaint.

We don't transport the garbage, only the household goods. The last time we taped a copy of the form to the top of the pile.

Roy,

Back to your question about screening...

We get what we allow. My 2 Minute In Home Visit prior to final approval would spot many of these junkie people.

You and I have talked about my lengthy 30 page lease. It's that long to cover many of these situations in advance ($50 to clean/repair, $50 per load to haul, items remaining after the keys are returned will be considered abandoned and disposed at Management's discretion, 8 or more Emergency Contacts to deliver the goods...

We only accept applicants with W2 jobs so we can garnish IF they leave a mess.

Then we do like Jeffrey teaches, set expectations. Most LLs just HOPE the res leaves it clean. We send move out instructions when (if) they notify us, again 2 weeks before their anticipated move out, and also deliver a set to the door. We also communicate with them by text reminding them to clean, worth $50/hour to them.

Hauling: time to find a housekeeper with access to a pickup (not yours!) For an extra $50 the will find one!

My housekeeper likes to have yard sales so my deal is she can take anything home as long as the entire house is cleaned out in 24 hours. She makes extra money selling the knicky knacks and clothes.

PS

Prospects in Indiana LOVE basements for storm safety. A basement is as valuable as a second bathroom.

If they fill it with junk pay the cleaning crew an extra $50 to clean it.

Again, lots of treasures to be found by scrappers.

...Brad,if my son rented from you and gave you my name and address and moved out and left a bunch of junk that does not allow you to bring it and dump it in my yard. I don't see what id so difficult to understand about that.I would have you charged with trespassing,dumping junk in my yard whatever I could have the cops come up with to charge you with...