Can I sell roomates property?

[tiffany144]

Please help!

I had a friend stay with me for a couple months. She NEVER paid me ANY money at all. Not even for food and personal items that she used up. She always said she would but never did. She left about a month and a half ago. The bedroom she stayed in was left a disaster. She called the police saying she wanted her stuff back a little over a month ago. I talked to the officer over the phone and explained to him I wasnt home at the time and it would take me a little bit to get her stuff together. He told me to contact her when I had it ready. I did and her phone has been off.
I havent heard from her since. And that was over a month ago. I really would like to get a roomate in my guestroom, but all of her stuff is there. I packed it up... when can I throw it out or sell it?
She never had a lease with me and was never on my lease.

What should I do?

Although she wasn't on a lease, the fact that she stayed more than a month made her a resident with rights. You cannot just toss her stuff now. I understand her phone has been shut off. Do you know where she lives or works? Do you have a relative's phone number or address? I suggest you try to contact her through all of these methods. Send a certified letter to her at her new place, her relative's house, or her work. Let her know she has 30 days to retrive these things before they are disposed of. Leave messages for her at work and her relative's houses. Make a log of each attempt to contact her. If you till are unable to contact her or she doesn't pick those things up, you can dispose of them in 30 days. (Yes, I know its been longer than that, but you made no record of all the attempts to contact her. You will need this if she comes back after you dispose of them to prove you tried dilligently to contact her. Otherwise, she could sue you.) You should also look up your state law on abandoned property. Some states prohibit you from selling these things or make you send the profits from them to the clerk of court. Please read the law in your state before you sell or toss them.