questions & answers

Question: What to do about a person who was living in a rental and left but has now come back to the residence although the residence has been put up for sale or lease. Can these people be reported to police as the owner of the property is out of state and unaware of what is going on as the residence has been cleaned and painted prior to the original renter all of a sudden showing up again possibly not returning keys to landlord.

Answer: It is impossible to answer this question directly without access to more information. If a tenant is physically absent from a rented dwelling but continues to pay rent, that tenant is not considered to have abandoned the dwelling (A.R.S. 33-1370), and only the landlord will know whether or not rent was paid. If the dwelling is currently up for sale or lease to the public, then there must be some way to contact the landlord, either directly or indirectly, if you have information to share with the landlord.