On the sixth day after a Judgment has been rendered by the Court, the landlord may apply for a Writ of Restitution if the tenants have not removed from the property. Please see our Fee Schedule page for filing fees. The Constable also requires a $150 deposit for his services.
The landlord shall hold the tenant’s personal property for a period of 14 days beginning on the first day after a writ of restitution is executed. The landlord shall use reasonable care in moving and holding the tenant’s property and may store it in an unoccupied dwelling unit owned by the landlord or off the premises if necessary. If the former dwelling unit is used to store the property, the landlord may change the locks on that unit.
The landlord shall prepare an inventory and promptly notify the tenant of the location and cost of storage of the personal property by sending a notice by certified mail, return receipt requested, addressed to the tenant’s last known address and to any of the tenant’s alternative addresses known to the landlord. To reclaim the personal property, the tenant shall pay the landlord only for the cost of removal and storage for the time the property is held by the landlord.
Within five days after a written offer by the tenant to pay these charges, the landlord must surrender possession of the personal property to the tenant upon the tenant’s tender of payment. If the landlord fails to surrender the property to the tenant, the tenant may recover the possessions or an amount equal to the damages determined by the Court if the landlord has destroyed or disposed of the possessions before the 14 days specified in this section, or after the tenant’s offer to pay.
The tenant shall pay all removal and storage costs accrued thru the fifth day after the tenant’s offer to pay is received by the landlord or the date of delivery or surrender of the property, whichever is sooner. Payment by the tenant relieves the landlord of any further responsibility for the tenant’s possessions.
A tenant does not have the right of access to that property until all payments specified above have been made in full, except that the tenant may obtain clothing and the tools, apparatus and books of a trade or profession, and identification or financial documents including all those related to the tenant’s immigration status, employment status, public assistance or medical care.
If the landlord holds the property for the 14-day period and the tenant does not make a reasonable effort to recover it, the landlord may administer the property as provided in ARS § 33-1370, subsection E & F.
ARS § 33-1370 F. The landlord may sell the property, retain the proceeds and apply them towards the tenant’s outstanding rent or other costs covered in the Lease Agreement or provided for in Title 33, Chapter 10, or Title 12, Chapter 8 and have been incurred by the landlord due to the tenant’s abandonment. Any excess proceeds shall be mailed to the tenant at the tenant’s last known address. If provided by a written rental agreement, the landlord may destroy or otherwise dispose of some or all of the property if the landlord reasonably determines that the value of the property is so low that the cost of moving, storage and conducting a public sale exceeds the amount that would be realized from the sale.
For a period of twelve months after the sale, the landlord shall:
- Keep adequate records of the outstanding and unpaid rent and the sale of the tenant’s
personal property.
- Hold any excess proceeds which have been returned as undeliverable for the benefit of
the tenant.