Education for Justice                  FACT SHEET H-30                       Fall 2009

 

GETTING PROPERTY BACK

AFTER YOU MOVE OUT

 

 

If you were evicted or moved out of your home and you left some of your things behind, there are rules about what the landlord can do with them.

 

  • The landlord must take care of your property for 60 days. 

 

  • The landlord must give the property back within 24 hours if it is still in the building.  If it has been moved to another place, the landlord has to give it back within 48 hours.  You have to write a letter asking for it back. 

 

These deadlines do not include weekends or holidays.  Put the date on your demand letter and keep a copy of it.  You may want to send it certified mail or deliver it in front of a witness.

 

  • You can still get your property back if you owe the landlord money from when you lived there including rent, fees, or court costs.  The landlord can ask for the money, but they cannot keep your things because you have not paid it.

 

  • You have to pay the landlord back any costs of moving and storing your things if you were evicted in court and the sheriff came to get you out.  This is only if your things were moved out of your building to somewhere else.  Your landlord can demand that you pay before you get your property back.

 

  • If your things were stored in your building, you can get them back without having to pay rent or storage and moving costs.  You may still owe the landlord for time spent moving things or storage costs.

 

  • If the landlord won’t give you back your property, you can sue in Conciliation Court.  You will need proof of all the property your landlord took and proof of any money you had to spend to replace items you cannot do without, like medicine or tools for work.  You can also ask for attorney’s fees and up to a $300 penalty.  See our fact sheet, Conciliation Court.  If you owe the landlord money, the landlord can counterclaim for it in Conciliation Court. 

 

If you were evicted in Hennepin or Ramsey County, you can go back to Housing Court with this claim, instead of filing a new case in Conciliation Court.

 

·        The landlord has to make a detailed list of all your property while the sheriff is there if you are evicted, and the landlord keeps the property at the building.  The list must state the condition of each item.  It must have the name and badge number of the sheriff.  Both you and the sheriff must get a copy.

 

·        After 60 days, the landlord can sell your property.  They have to give you 14 days written notice before the sale.  If you were evicted and the property was stored off-site, they must give you 3 weeks’ notice of the sale.  If they do not give you the notice themselves, they must mail it to your last known address and post it on the property for 2 weeks or, in some cases, publish it in the newspaper.

 

·        The landlord can use the money from the sale for moving and storage costs or for any debts you owe them.  You can ask for any money left over.  Write a letter to the landlord saying you want the money that is left.  Keep a copy.

 

 

Minneapolis Legal Aid – CLE

MN Legal Services Coalition

2324 University Avenue W. – Suite 101B

St. Paul, MN 55114

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