What are you allowed to take with you when you leave?

[AZChick]

In AZ it is now common place to hear stories of people being arrested for stripping their homes in foreclosure. Does anyone know what you can take with you when you leave? Can you take your appliances, ceiling fans, garage door openers, window treatments? The things that you paid to have installed? Any ideas?

[knownick]

I'm not sure what the law actually says about this, and I'm sure it varies from state to state, but I've heard it phrased a few different ways.

The most entertaining one was to imagine your house being turned upside down. Anything that would fall out is yours to take.

Fridge? Yes. Dishwasher? A bit of a gray area probably. The copper in the walls? Definitely not.

Personally, we plan on taking what we put in. Ceiling fans, window treatments, water softener, etc. Those are mine, I paid for them, end of story.

That's about it though. If I bought it with the house I consider that the bank's property and they can have it back.

[KT in CA]

We are taking our fridge, of course. We aren't taking anything that is built in. We are taking our ceiling fans. Those aren't built in. I think maybe a good rule of thumb would be if taking it would cause any damage, then maybe you don't want to. Like taking a dishwasher may cause damage, and taking a stove or microwave could also. But I also know some people gut the house. One person I heard of had done a major remodel in his kitchen, and he even took the granite out that he installed before he left.

I also may dig up a couple of the nice smaller trees in our backyard to see if I can get them to grow where we are going. If not its no loss because they will probably die anyway at the old house.

[dogatemy]

But I also know some people gut the house. One person I heard of had done a major remodel in his kitchen, and he even took the granite out that he installed before he left.

I have no interest in gutting my home but I am curious how banks have handled this in the past. Has anyone removed fixtures from their home such as ceiling fans, kitchen fixtures and A/C units? If so then what has the response from the bank been??

[fallacy]

I removed my upgraded light fixtures, my refigerator, and even some really big boulders I bought for the landscaping. I could have taken the ceiling fans, but they were already in the house prior to my arrival, so I left them.

The only thing I paid for that I left behind were the window blinds. I don't want the punk kids in the area to see that the house is vacant through the windows.

[AZChick]

Taking the AC Unit is what got the guy in trouble in Surprise, AZ. He cut a few bearing walls in the ceiling to get the unit out. What was surprising is that it was his nieghbors who reported him to police. Police went to his job in Tucson and arrested him. He took, light fixtures, appliances, and a few plants from his backyard, but I think it was the AC unit and the damage that its removal caused that pissed his neighbors off. No wonder in AZ so many investors buying these homes are "remodeling" then trying to sell for a profit..

[ProfessorShays]

These stories help to suggest why the concept of "keys for cash" is beneficial both to the foreclosed borrower and the foreclosing lender. Rationale for this approach includes:

1. It avoids the expenses associated with the unlawful detainer eviction process (attorney fees, court costs, extension of time to obtain possession of the home resulting in the lengthening of time it takes for the lender to dispose of the home.
2. It provides the borrower with a monetary incentive not to damage the home, thus avoiding the potential of the repair and refurbishing costs that would have to be expended to return the home to a marketable condition.
3. It provides the borrower with funding that can be utilized to pay the upfront costs for rental housing.

Daniel

[faith]

These stories help to suggest why the concept of "keys for cash" is beneficial both to the foreclosed borrower and the foreclosing lender. Rationale for this approach includes:

1. It avoids the expenses associated with the unlawful detainer eviction process (attorney fees, court costs, extension of time to obtain possession of the home resulting in the lengthening of time it takes for the lender to dispose of the home.
2. It provides the borrower with a monetary incentive not to damage the home, thus avoiding the potential of the repair and refurbishing costs that would have to be expended to return the home to a marketable condition.
3. It provides the borrower with funding that can be utilized to pay the upfront costs for rental housing.

Daniel

Professor Shays,
Nice to read your input again. I just saw on tv in San Diego area that a woman chained herself in front of her foreclosed home. She eventually was forced to leave her home, however she came back and damaged the house and is now in jail.

When I sold my house, I left the washer, dryer, refrigerator, patio table, central vacuum to attract a buyer and it did. There were times I felt pain and thought of getting it back or get even with CW but I am glad I was able to control myself and let it go. I wonder if homeowners who are facing foreclosures know the things you just mentioned above. I didn't know about it until I've read yours. Thanks for your help and all your input. I thank God, Moe, Cat and the people who gave their ideas and opinions about my situation.

God bless,

Faith

[miked2023]

I installed a 5K ac on the roof. Any chance I could sell that? Or would I get in trouble? There was an old one there when I bought the house but it died within the year. Same issuse on pool equipment.

[Moe Bedard]

They can go after you for fixtures that were bought with the mortgage, if there is proof. My take is an ethical one. If the bank paid for it, then they get it. If I paid it, then well, IT'S MINE!

For example, say I installed a koi pond, deluxe BBQ etc on my dime, I'm taking my fish, BBQ and steaks and they can keep the house (collateral). My fish and steaks weren't part of that deal

There is no reason why you cant replace this stuff with older equipment if you wanted to and it's yours.

[CaWalker]

They can go after you for fixtures that were bought with the mortgage, if there is proof. My take is an ethical one. If the bank paid for it, then they get it. If I paid it, then well, IT'S MINE!

I spent about $8,000 in my backyard - Stamped color concrete, sod etc. If I leave the house, will the bank pay me 8K (that stuff is still valued at 8K)? If not, then, if I took the Fridge, Microwave etc that was part of the loan, why should they care.

I plan on taking the Fridge, Washer, Dryer even though bank paid for them.
I'm also taking with me all fixtures that I put in, and leaving behind the 8K upgrades in the backyard.

Well, I put in surround speakers in my walls. They are mine and going with me. I'll leave behind the protruding wires from the walls with a label that says what it is. I'm sure it'll help the next owners with their audio system.

When I leave, there'll be no holes in walls, if there is any, I'll cover it up with Spackle.

[ProfessorShays]

The focus should not be on "what the loan paid for" but "what does the lender have a security interest in." Truth is, the lender's security interest on your typical residential real estate loan covers only real property and fixtures. A free standing refrigerator is not a fixture, but personal property. To secure an interest on the refrigerator the lender must have filed a UCC-1 financing statement that you would have signed with the California Secretary of State. Same would be true of the washer and dryer. Now when you get to things like toilets, built in dishwashers, etc., then you cross the line from personalty to fixtures (which are characterized as real property.

So legally your guiding light should be on what the lender has a security interest in, and not what the loan paid for.

Daniel

[jinksy]

Our home burnt down in 2007 and when we got the new DW on the lot we kept our old A/C unit that was the only thing that didn't burn down. Since it was mine before can I still keep it?

[MRC123]

What happens if your home gets vandalized while your waiting for the bank to foreclose? Just wondering how that senario goes.

[jinksy]

I would like to take this time to thank the owner of this forum for being here. I have a lot more reading to do, but there is a wealth of info here and I just wanted to let you know that I appreciate it.

[ProfessorShays]

MRC123 writes, "What happens if your home gets vandalized while your waiting for the bank to foreclose? Just wondering how that senario goes."

As a citizen, you and I have a moral obligation to make sure that a person's property is not subjected to vandalism. Best approach in that regard is to do the responsible thing. That means that if you intend to vacate the property before the foreclosure date (or anytime thereafter), you should contact the lender and make sure that arrangements are made to transfer physical possession to the lender and do a "walk through" just as you would in a landlord-tenant situation. You want the lender to acknowledge receipt of possession and also acknowledge the condition of the premises at the time the keys are turned over. Taking pictures at the time of surrender helps eliminate the possibility of lender claims for waste (vandalism) that occur once possession has been turned over.

Don't leave your common sense behind. Deal with this issue as you would other life circumstances. The lender doesn't want your home. From a practical standpoint if it is over encumbered as many homes are today, you don't want it either.

Daniel

[ProfessorShays]

I appreciate the privilege of participating on this forum and utilizing it as a recource for the students taking my classes. It is one thing to teach out of a book that contains stale references to past history. It is quite another to teach students based upon the "real life" experiences shared here by forum participants.

Daniel

[Moe Bedard]

I'm also taking with me all fixtures that I put in, and leaving behind the 8K upgrades in the backyard.

Well, I put in surround speakers in my walls. They are mine and going with me. I'll leave behind the protruding wires from the walls with a label that says what it is. I'm sure it'll help the next owners with their audio system.

When I leave, there'll be no holes in walls, if there is any, I'll cover it up with Spackle.

You should be fine and it looks like you are not going to strip the home or leave it in disrepair. A tasteful exit and probably exactly what I would do.

[jinksy]

Can I take my A/C unit that I brought to the home?

[Moe Bedard]

In reality, you can strip the whole house. The question is, is your lender going to come after you?

By law, if you have a mortgage, your mortgage company owns the home and you are just a borrower of the money. When you pay it all back, you now own the home.

During the time of borrowing, you don't own anything in relation to that home or that is affixed to it. So the law states you have to leave the fixtures. However, you may possibly get away with this if you replace it, then you should be fine. But this is at your own risk.

[jinksy]

I'm on SS Disability so it may be a little more difficult for them to get blood out of a turnip.

BTW, thanks for providing this site for us.

[MRC123]

I just found out that they postponed our auction date for the third time from today June 17th. Now its been rescheduled for July 17th.

We did not know the proper way to leave a house. Therefore didn't do any of the things that Professor Shays mentioned. We did at the advice of our Realator take video of the house along with the current newspaper to show that everything was intact when we left, though a little messy, but still there.

Would it be too late to contact them at this point and ask them to secure the property. We have continued to pay the HOA and Insurance.

We have went back only once since we moved to take care of some weeds, but that's it.

[countrywideh8r]

These stories help to suggest why the concept of "keys for cash" is beneficial both to the foreclosed borrower and the foreclosing lender. Rationale for this approach includes:

1. It avoids the expenses associated with the unlawful detainer eviction process (attorney fees, court costs, extension of time to obtain possession of the home resulting in the lengthening of time it takes for the lender to dispose of the home.
2. It provides the borrower with a monetary incentive not to damage the home, thus avoiding the potential of the repair and refurbishing costs that would have to be expended to return the home to a marketable condition.
3. It provides the borrower with funding that can be utilized to pay the upfront costs for rental housing.

Daniel

As my time draws ever closer, I called and asked about this today.

The girl said: "Are you serious? We don't work that way. You'd seriously ask that after all that's happened? Of course we won't pay you to leave a house you can afford but chose not to pay for."

I don't understand how I always get these kind of reactions. I'm polite and courteous but they always seem to get really upset once they see what my income is on their records.

So in that case, I'll strip anything that's not bolted down

[LeavingAZ]

I took:

*all my fans and light fixtures. Swapped them w/ what the house had when we first moved in (cheapie stuff)
*Washer and Dryer
*Swapped the stove & dishwasher for generics (that work)
*Fridge

I didn't want the house looking bad. It doesn't look good, but it doesn't look stripped either.

[jinksy]

Well, as of right now I've chickened out. My refi is supposed to go through Monday. If it doesn't then I'm gone.