Lost Video Island

[mistojen]

My neighbors got evicted at the beginning of this month. I was really sad to hear it, and sadder to see them go, because they were good neighbors. They never were too loud, and they always gave me carte blanche on stuff before they sold it, which was good, because I didn't have ANY furniture.

Anyway, a couple of weeks ago, they were finally up on the time to get out, and they knocked on my door asking if they could store some of their things on my porch for a few days, because they didn't have room to move them just yet. I said it was fine, because I figured I owed them for all the stuff they gave me, and so they moved a mattress, a recliner, an end table, and a dresser onto my balcony. I never go out there, so I didn't mind. They came back the next day and knocked again, telling me that they couldn't pick it up just yet, but they would send someone over in the next couple of days to get it. Cool, that's fine. Only, I never open my blinds, because the weather has been crappy, and I never go outside, because it's cold...so until yesterday--almost two weeks later; when I opened the blinds because it was finally sunny out--I didn't realize that they had never picked the stuff up.

Today I come home from work and there's a letter in my door telling me that I have until Friday to get the stuff off the balcony or the complex is going to charge me $50 for clean up. I don't know if that means they plan on charging me and then hauling it away, or just charging me $50 a day until I move it, because I don't remember what it says in the lease and I can't find mine. "Unsightly balcony/porch" is a stipulation of my lease and the letter I got today was an "Official Warning". Either way, I'm out $50, because my apartment is too small to bring it inside, or I'd have done it already.

If it was my stuff, I'd just throw it away, but it isn't my stuff and I don't know what to do with it... I don't want to throw it away, because technically a verbal agreement is binding and I DID agree that they could use my balcony for storage. If I'd known that they were gonna d*ck around for two weeks, I'd have told them no, but I didn't realize that. I don't know where they are now or how to get a hold of them, and I don't want to get summoned to court because I got rid of their stuff. So...what do I do...?!
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[marcus]

Wow, that's tough. I dunno what you could do...so it can't fit in your house? Cos if it can I'd suggest bringing it all in, then in one week's time when it's been three weeks, I say throw it out. Since then it'll have been a whole month, so I think it's fair enough for you to get rid of it when they said they'd pick it up in a couple of days.
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It's official - Aislynn is 36. Add a 0 to the end of that and you've got a full circle.

[Aislynn]

Oh man, hon, that sucks! I don't know why people act that way! I mean, even if they couldn't for some reason pick their stuff up, then they ought to at least have the courtesy to come by and tell you that and make arrangements so that you don't get stuck with their bill!

I don't even know where to begin to make any suggestions as to what you could do! Can you ask the landlord/super/equivalent if they had any contact info? If you could snag a family member's phone number or whatever, you could at least try to get somebody to get ahold of them. I know that's probably not likely that they'd give you that info, though.

That's so awful because I think they can come back and hold you libel for their stuff, even if they're the ones who "abandoned" it and even if you have no choice in the matter when management hauls it away... There's gotta be some legal loophole, of course, some magic date or something when it would "void" your verbal agreement (especially since it was for a few days, not weeks). But again, I don't know what it would be.

I guess ideally, if you had somebody with law experience (or could get some advice from a lawyer) that would be who could best tell you what to do. You need a way to get rid of that stuff so the complex won't come after you, yet to have it to where if the ex-neighbors come looking for it, they won't try to sue you for getting rid of their stuff. Yet ALSO not have you stuck storing these people's things for an indefinite amount of time.

Sorry I have a lot more questions than any sort of answer! In the short term, if you could possibly cram that stuff in your apartment, that would be something to hopefully avoid any more clean up fees for right now. But that would still leave you with the problem of what to do with that stuff, if they never come back to get it. (And of course, they'll come back to get it the day after you junk it, even if it's 10 years down the line... )

*sends half naked Boone clones over to console Jen* Sorry, that's all I really got, when all is said and done... I hope that they'll just show up and claim their stuff before Friday and just save you anymore hassle!

[mistojen]

Thanks for replying, you guys.

I could bring it into my apartment but

a. my apartment is TINY. It'd take up my whole living room and that's the only space I actually HAVE.
b. that stuff has been outside for a couple of weeks...it's rained, and everything...it's probably stinky as ALL hell, by now.

I plan on asking the office for contact info, like you said, Ais, because that's what my mom and dad suggested I do, but again, like you said, it's unlikely they'll give it to me. I wonder if I just eat the $50, if the complex will haul it off and give me a written statement saying that THEY got rid of it? I also left the question on a Indiana State Law forum about Contracts/Verbal agreements for a lawyer to answer--says they answer within 3 days. Too bad I don't HAVE three days

I'm kind of freaking out right now, because I don't know if this will mar my lease and make it so they won't let me stay here when this lease is up...and I really, REALLY love it here.

I'll keep you guys posted, if ya care

PS--Ais, thanks for the clones. Hopefully they'll at least take my mind off it long enough for me to get some sleep tonight...
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[IntoTheVoid]

That really does suck.

The only thing I can suggest is ringing your ex-neighbours and asking them is they can come and pick it up early. But if you can't, then ring ya mummy or daddy. Thats what I do when I need help! But thats usually when I forget my lunch money or something

Really hope it gets sorted out soon. You were only trying to help, geez!!
PS: You're planning on sleeping when you have half-naked clones of Boone in your flat?! What are you thinking!!!!!!
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"Jack is the guy she should be with.
She does genuinely love him.
And she knows that he would take excellent care of her." - Damon Lindelof

[mistojen]

You guys---thanks so much. I was freaking out over nothing, I guess, because the complex said that because they don't live here anymore and they left their things out in public domain instead of in my apartment, they have no claim on them, if something happens (ie, if someone was to steal their stuff, or maintenance hauls it off). I don't know if she's right, or not, but I wrote her name down on my letter and plan on keeping it, just in case.

She told me that the complex isn't going to charge me, and that she's going to try to contact my ex-neighbors via the phone number she has on file, and if she manages to get a hold of them, she's telling them that they have 24 hours to pick up their things, because on Friday, she's having maintenance come over and get rid of the stuff and throw it out.

I just hope it all works out...I'm so not in the mood to be pulled into court over some crappy furniture...

PS, IntoTheVoid: I didn't get much sleep, anyway, because I was stressing, so the half-naked Boone clones were really good company
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[xXAngelicEvilXx]

My take on this:

Legally, if you are in possession of someone's things for a month, they then become yours, regardless of verbal agreement. After moving out of my ex's, he got rid of a bunch of stuff after a month, and the officer told me this. They chose to mess around, and even though they were good neighbors, now it's gonna cost you. You gotta do what you gotta do. in the end, you have to pay out money to get rid of their stuff, which isn't cool.

[mistojen]

well, it's been just under a month, however...the complex is going to (thankfully) waive the fee because I explained that the reason it was out there was because it wasn't my stuff and I didn't want to be thought "stealing" it. All is taken care of, apparently. Here's hoping!
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[Hobbes]

It interests me how the first thing that occurs here is thoughts about lawsuits
Btw, is the stuff worth anything at all? Seems a huge shame to just trash it.

[mistojen]

This nation is sue-happy, I swear It's ridiculous. Actually I went out on my balcony tonight and one of the pieces was missing, so...hopefully they're SLOWLY getting their things after the office called them? If the stuff hadn't been out in the rain, I'd take the recliner and maybe the end table, but I'm sure it smells awful by now, so I doubt it's worth much anymore
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