Can a storage facility sell your items?
As you go through life, things happen that may require you to store items away in a storage facility until later use. Things such as selling your home before you expected, accumulating a lot of items that you no longer have space to store in your home or garage, purchasing inventory for a new business venture, or buying items for your children when they go off to college.
But, what happens should you not pay your monthly storage facility rental fees? Can the storage facility sell your items? Yes, they can.
Why would a storage facility sell your items?
When you first signed your storage rental lease, you may have been so excited at the cost that you neglected to read through each clause. A huge mistake because in that agreement, most storage facilities will state what they will do (legally) to pay themselves should you get behind on your rent.
Failure to pay rent is one reason why many storage facilities will take ownership of your unit and auction off your items, but you may be wondering if there are others.
Usually, no, but in the event that a tragic accident happens, and you pass and do not mention your storage unit in your will or assign the belongings to someone, the storage facility may accumulate those items and auction them off.
Other storage facility laws you may not be aware of
While each state is different, it’s important you read through each clause and do not sign any agreement unless you fully understand the repercussions should you fall behind on payments.
- Default — your lease should include a point of default which includes the default period for non-payment.
- Notification — should you fall behind on your payments, by law, you should receive a notification via email or mail that specifies the past-due amount and date you must pay the past-due amount by. It should also include a failure to pay paragraph that lets you know what will happen should the past-due amount not be settled by the due date.
- Public notice — there must also be a public notice announcement posted in the storage facility office, on their website, or in the local newspaper.
