BiggerPockets

It might be possible to prevail in small claims court - if you knew where to serve her and felt like spending your time suiing her... Even then, what's a judgement against a bankrupt person worth? my .02 is chalk it up and move on.

Well, obviously there are laws against theft. But you don't know what unit was there or who took it. Is it possible that the furnace belonged to the tenant? Did you buy the property from a landlord or at trustee's sale? You said the tenant was uncooperative. Do you mean she didn't/wouldn't pay rent? Or that she didn't make it easy for you to terminate her tenancy?

If you bought a property without seeing the interior before you bought it, that's the risk. I'm guessing you are looking at a $3-5K replacement cost. IMO it would be a waste of time to make a police report or show up in small claims without proof of what was stolen.

Did she actually pay for the furnace? If she did, it seems as if she should be able to take it with her unless you had something in writing telling her that if she bought it, it had to stay.

If she didn't pay for it or if you had something in writing that it should stay, then I don't see why you couldn't file a police report for theft. And add that as part of the unpaid rent claim you probably already have against her as part of the eviction process.

The only question is whether you actually think you'll be able to collect for it and, if not, whether its worth your time to do something about it.

I would have no problem filing the police report and letting them know where she's at. If nothing else, it might cause her a little bit of headache/worry.

why would you allow the tenant to buy the furnace? what happens if her "friend" installed it, does a bad job and blows up your house?

are you the kind of landlord that does nothing for the house/tenant?

@George:
I had no idea that she bought a furnace. I bought the property from a wholesaler who bought it from the previous owner. Apparently the previous owner had an agreement with the tenant that the tenant would take care of all maintenance and purchases, which is why her rent was so low. So that would explain why she bought the furnace and windows.

When I acquired the property, my plan was to start fresh by fixing the place up, bringing the rent up to market rate, and being a proper landlord. So the first step was to gain possession of the property.

It sounds like previous owner gave rent concessions in exchange for furnace. If you can verify this with a call to previous ownership then...Call police file report and send a nasty gram to wreck her credit stating she owes your company 4k to purchase furnace she toke.
You might not collect but to send mail to Trans union Equifax and Experian is cheap even 1st class or certified mail is less then 10 dollars.
This is too big a loss to just ignore. I always pay 100 to file and get money action judgment on people like this. To let them go, is a way for them to screw the next guy and they can laugh at you knowing you did nothing. I know it sounds like your getting back what your doing is forcing them to pay dearly if they dont pay you back. Having crappy credit is a good way to send a message to a tenant that steals.
If you cannot verify previous owner gave rent concession then a court battle might be tough to win and just a letter to credit bureau would be what I would do.
Then you could report non pmt of rent too;)
My line for filing in small claims court is between 800 and 1000 in losses. Its just not worth it chasing people for money it seems like throwing good dollars away. How ever I know that if I let enough people think Im weak that may make me a target. To protect myself I attempt to collect. If I do an eviction there is an automatic money action I can do that doesn't cost extra.
The wealth of the wicked is laid up for the righteous. My 2 cents
BTW: for the record I had a new water heater taken from me by a tenant 2 years ago. I didnt try to sue because she was an inherited tenant I got when I bought apt building. It was a loss of 600. I also never got her info from previous landlord because they were out of state seller. I chalked it up to risk/reward of taking over property from an absentee previous owner.
Over the years when people tell me its great property buy since its occupied I have been known to tell the seller agent or ect how do I know its a good deal maybe i wind up evicting all the tenants because none will qualify as decent tenants in a building I would own. So I have this thing in me that always makes me believe in any multi unit I buy that the previous landlord might not be as picky as I am getting good paying tenants. This is the key to less damage and theft on property the other key is location.
Its hard to always be there when they move out so its best just to bring in quality tenants to start with that will be honorable. Having immaculate credit is a start with applicants

I understand, Start with immaculate credit and work your way down. Some things I dont hold a tenant accountable form others I am highly suspect of.
My 1st 2 things I automatically deny tenants applications is drug convictions and evictions less then 7 years old. That is the kiss of death for me.
Credit non pmts I might let medical or collections if I deem the collection to be non related to housing and utilities. I will go thru an application and pick it apart like an underwriter does. I am looking at character and pmt history and income and all the things that I can knowingly see about a person I really dont know.
Of course most with immaculate credit wont be renters long;) I do get tenants with perfect credit but I will agree its the bottom side of 50% that have a better then 700 triscore.