Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Florida

Abandonment of property laws

A tenant of ours left the property and moved out of the country. All they left were a few personal effects and their car, a 2000 Ford Contour with the keys.

They left with several months still on the lease and we are now paying for the storage of this automobile. We have sent a letter, mailed to the rental property, notifying the owners of a possible pending sale of their artifacts. They left no forwarding information with the Post Office. An acquaintance of there said that they left the country, moving back to Puerto Rico. That acquaintance has since left also.

We've contacted law enforcement and they said there isn't much they can do. The sale of this automobile would go a long way toward recouping some of our losses. How can we sell this automobile and secure a new title for it?


Asked on 11/19/03, 2:53 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Peter Gonzalez Sanchez-Medina, Gonzalez, Quesada, Lage, Crespo, Gomez & MachadoLLP

Re: Abandonment of property laws

You need to file an action for eviction and damages and obtain a final judgment against the tenant. Then, you may be able to pursue the automobile to satisfy the money judgment if the tenant is the registered owner. Is there a lien holder to the title of the automobile? If so, then your rights to sell the automobile may be inferior to the lien holder's rights, but you may be able to obtain sufficient money for the car to pay off the first lien holder, if any, and satisfy all or part of the judgment you intend to obtain. If it's worth it, you may want to retain the services of an attorney to make sure you do the foregoing properly. Good luck.

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Answered on 11/19/03, 2:58 pm


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