Purchasing A Property With Hoarders As Tenants

[David Graham]

Hi All,

My brother and I already own a couple rentals in the Pittsburgh area, but this is the first time encountering a property with hoarders. It is a large side-by-side duplex (roughly 3,800 sq/ft) that is filled top to bottom with stuff in every room and even the outside to some extent. Both tenants will be notified upon closing that their leases will not be renewed, but we fully expect a majority of the items to be left behind.

For those of you that have encountered this before, how did you handle removal of the items? I've heard of people bringing in auctions, hosting sales, etc., but wanted to see what has worked, or not worked, for others.

Thanks!

[Kevin Sobilo]

@David Graham, in my experience there is not enough of value to be worthwhile hosting a sale. True hoarders are not keeping things because they are valuable although there may be some saleable things. 

My typical approach is to sort through the property. I am first looking to clear out a bulk of items that can be donated to the Salvation Army. Where I am they will even take things like old TVs because they have a deal with an electronics recycling company. This stuff is free to get rid off and you might even consider taking the charitable deduction on your taxes for the donation. 

Then, as I sort through the property I set aside any scrap metal. There are often old appliances and large scrap items, but also many smaller items that can be added to the pile. Those can be hauled later to the scrap yard and get you a few $$$. 

Then I haul the rest directly to the dump or transfer station. I personally don't use dumpsters. Its cheaper to haul by truck and also you don't have to worry about a neighbor filling your dumpster up in the middle of the night (it happens!)

Lastly, I am setting aside anything that has enough value to be worth selling. For example, in the last house I rehabbed I found an old sign in the coal bin in the basement. I traded it to a collector for about $700 in silver ala "American Pickers" style barn-find deal making! With the price of silver spiking that is now worth well over $1k.