Alaska abandoned property law: a 15 day notice, safekeeping and a public sale
AS 34.03.260 applies when a tenant leaves personal property after a tenancy ends and the landlord reasonably believes it was abandoned. The landlord gives a notice with at least 15 days to remove it, stores it with reasonable care, and may then sell it at a public sale.
When does the section apply?
Subsection (a) applies on termination of a tenancy, including after a lease expires or by surrender or abandonment of the premises, when the tenant has left personal property and the landlord reasonably believes the tenant abandoned it. It starts with the words "except as otherwise agreed," so a lease clause can change the process, though a clause cannot remove the landlord's liability for deliberate or negligent violations.
Which notice do you send?
The statute offers two notice tracks, each with a removal date not less than 15 days after delivery or mailing:
- Valuable property: demand removal by the stated date and warn that unremoved property may be sold. If it is not removed, the landlord may sell it at a public sale. Perishable commodities can be disposed of in any manner the landlord considers fit.
- Valueless property: where the landlord reasonably decides it is worth so little that storing it and holding a public sale would probably cost more than the sale would bring, the notice says the landlord intends to destroy or dispose of it. A single notice can elect to sell some items and destroy the rest.
How must you store it, and who pays?
After the notice, subsection (b) requires the landlord to store the property in a place of safekeeping and exercise reasonable care. The landlord is not responsible to the tenant for loss not caused by the landlord's deliberate or negligent act. Storing on the old premises is allowed but the storage cost may not exceed the fair rental value of the premises. If the property goes to a commercial storage company, storage cost includes the actual storage charge and removal to the storage site.
If the tenant answers in writing that they will remove the property and does not do so within the notice time or within 15 days after the delivery or mailing of the written response, whichever is later, the tenant is conclusively presumed to have abandoned it. A tenant who does collect the property owes the cost of storage for the time you held it.
Example a made-up landlord mails a notice on October 1 setting October 20 as the removal date. On October 12 the tenant replies in writing that they will collect. Fifteen days after October 12 is October 27, which is later than October 20, so the presumption of abandonment cannot arise before October 27.
How is the sale run, and what is the liability?
A public sale must be conducted under AS 09.35.140, and the landlord may dispose of any property on which no bid is made. Subsection (d) says the landlord is not liable in damages for a tenant's loss caused by storage, destruction or disposition under the section. But a landlord who deliberately or negligently violates the section is liable for actual damages plus penal damages not exceeding the actual damages.
Using DoorKeeping in Alaska
A removal date is only as good as the proof of when the notice went out. DoorKeeping logs the mailing or delivery, keeps the inventory with photos and shows both the notice date and the 15 day dates. You write nothing without a draft to check first, and DoorKeeping never sells anything for you. This is general information, not legal advice. Check the current statute or ask a local attorney before you act.
Sources
Questions
- How much notice must an Alaska landlord give before selling abandoned property?
- A notice demanding removal by a date not less than 15 days after delivery or mailing, stating that unremoved property may be sold.
- Can an Alaska landlord throw away worthless items?
- Yes, if the landlord reasonably determines the property is valueless or that sale costs would exceed proceeds, after a notice with at least 15 days to remove it saying the landlord intends to dispose of it.
- What is a landlord's liability in Alaska?
- None for proper storage, destruction or disposition, but deliberate or negligent violations bring actual damages and penal damages up to the same amount.