For Landlords · June 2026
What Can You Do With Property Left After an Eviction in California?
Civil Code §§1983–1988, translated into plain English by a company that clears the units afterward.
Read this first: we haul junk; we don't practice law. This is a general summary of California's abandoned-property statutes as commonly applied, written to help you ask your attorney the right questions — not to replace that conversation. Statutes change and facts matter. Informational only — consult an attorney before disposing of a tenant's belongings.
The core rule: you can't just toss it
When a tenant leaves belongings behind — after an eviction, an abandonment, or a normal move-out — California generally treats those items as still belonging to the tenant. Civil Code sections 1983 through 1988 set out a process: notify, wait, then dispose or sell depending on value. Skipping it exposes you to liability for the property's value, which can dwarf the cost of doing it right.
Step 1: The notice (§1983–1984)
You send the former tenant a written "Notice of Right to Reclaim Abandoned Property" — to their last known address, and by email if they gave one. The notice describes the items (in reasonable detail), says where they can be claimed, and sets a deadline: at least 15 days after personal delivery, or 18 days after mailing. You can require the tenant to pay reasonable storage costs before handing things over.
Step 2: The waiting period
Until the deadline passes, you store the property with reasonable care — in the unit, a garage, or storage. You're not running a warehouse forever; you're holding it for the statutory window. Photograph everything when you box it. Timestamped photos are the cheapest insurance in this entire process (it's also why our eviction cleanout service documents every room by default).
Step 3: Disposal depends on value (§1988)
- Below the statutory threshold (the Code sets a dollar figure — currently in the several-hundred-dollar range; confirm the current number with your attorney): after the deadline, the landlord may keep, sell, or dispose of the property.
- Above the threshold: the property must be sold at a public sale with published notice, with proceeds (minus costs) going to the county. In practice, most left-behind property in Kern County rentals — worn furniture, clothes, trash — falls well below the line, but the valuation is your call to make carefully, not ours.
What we see go wrong
- Clearing on lockout day. The sheriff's lockout restores possession of the unit — it doesn't waive the tenant's property rights. The notice process still applies.
- No inventory. "There was nothing of value" is hard to prove later without photos.
- Guessing at deadlines. Count the 15/18 days from the right date and keep the mailing receipt.
When the clock runs out, we're the fast part
Once your attorney confirms you're clear to dispose, one call books the clear-out: full unit cleared, timestamped before-and-after photos for your file, donate-and-recycle handling, and a rent-ready handoff — anywhere on our routes, from metro Bakersfield to Delano, Wasco, and Lamont. Multi-unit owners use our standing accounts through the eviction cleanout service, and heavy turnovers pair well with a $475 staged roll-off.