Abandonment of personal property

[TNervig]

I have a land contract entered into June 2000 in Nebraska Contract states seller retains personal portable equipment and a safe. He was advised in October 2001 to remove all of these items and removed some on the 10th. Since that time only one other item has been moved I believe by him. I have left numerous messages with no reponse from him. I wish to send a certified letter advising him to remove in 30 days or they will be considered abandoned and retained by me at my discretion of use. Does the UCC code cover this and do I have to give him 60 or 90 days? and can I retain these items if he fails to remove. I do plan on sending a copy to the attorney he uses so he is also aware of the situation. Unless he has a use he will leave them there for the duration, which could be years. Some of these possible items make up perimeter fencing to corrals, which are used by my livestock...

I want to be fair, however, I don't want to be taken advantage of. Contract does not state he has lifetime use of my property as a storage place.

 

[HomeGuru]

I presume you are the Buyer. Please confirm that as well as the State the property is in. I already know the contract was signed in Nebraska.

 

[TNervig]

The acreage is also in Nebraska and I am the buyer. I am just wondering if I can claim under UCC code - abandonment once the 30 days is over, however, it's not to say that he won't continue to remove items while I am gone. I want want clarification. I am working on cleaning things up from many years of past accumulation and don't want anything to come back and haunt me because I discarded something he felt was portable personal property.

Thanks for the reply.

 

[HomeGuru]

You need to review the terms and conditions in your contract. Remember, in a land contract, the Seller retains legal title until the contract is satisfied.
Therefore, the Seller still has legal title to the property and the stuff still belongs to the Seller.

 

[TNervig]

Everything has been filed with the courthouse along with a deed of trust. The contract does not state that he has permanent storage rights to leave, what he chooses to consider personal portable equipment, indefinitely. He has the right to retain those specific items, which I would say on his own premises. One item is a very large heave steel safe in my basement. I cannot remodel until this is removed. In past real estate transactions, I have had seller's wish to retain certain items, at which time when possession was transfered, they removed those specific items. Would a land contract be deemed "special" allowing the seller to do as he pleases and leave items on the premises until time is convenient to remove - let say 5 years down the road. This just doesn't make sense.

 

[HomeGuru]

You have remedies pursuant to State law. Consult an attorney to help you send the Seller a demand letter to remove his property by a specified date.

 

[TNervig]

Thanks for the replies. Doesn't the Uniform Commercial Code cover this area - meaning that once notice has been given the other party has the specified time to remove or it can be claimed as abandoned property. I know there is a section that touches on this, however, not having much luck finding it..


Thanks again.