Abandoned Property After Eviction in Saskatchewan: Landlord Rules

The tenant is gone but their furniture is not. You want the unit cleared and re-rented, but tossing everything to the curb on day one can land you in an ORT dispute with damages far exceeding the cost of a few days' storage.

Section 85 of The Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 sets out what Saskatchewan landlords must do when a tenant leaves personal property behind after an eviction or abandonment.

Your Immediate Obligations

Before you touch anything:

1. Make reasonable efforts to contact the former tenant. Call, email, and send a letter to their last known address. Document every attempt in writing with dates and times.
2. Compile an inventory. Walk through the unit and list every item left behind with a brief description. Photograph or video the condition of each item. This inventory is your evidence if the former tenant later claims you destroyed valuable property.

Do not start disposing of anything until you have completed these steps.

The Valuation Threshold

The Act distinguishes between low-value and higher-value abandoned property:

Estimated value of $1,500 or less: After making reasonable efforts to locate the tenant and being reasonably satisfied that they cannot be located or have not made reasonable arrangements for disposition, you may remove, sell, or otherwise dispose of the property without an ORT order (s. 85(4)–(6)).

Estimated value over $1,500: Make reasonable efforts to locate the tenant and apply to the ORT for a Property Disposition Order. Do not sell, give away, or destroy the items until the hearing officer authorizes disposition.

The valuation is based on estimated market value — what the items would reasonably sell for, not replacement cost. Be conservative in your estimates. If you undervalue items and dispose of them without authorization, the former tenant can claim compensation for the actual value.

Sensitive or Irreplaceable Items

The Act does not create separate storage rules for these categories, but you may choose to handle them with particular care while arranging for the tenant to collect them or following the required disposition process:

• Personal identification documents (passports, birth certificates, driver's licences)
• Financial records (tax documents, bank statements)
• Medical items (prescriptions, medical devices)
• Family photographs and irreplaceable personal items

Store them securely and make them available to the former tenant on reasonable request.

The Storage Cost Question

If you are storing abandoned property while waiting for the ORT to authorize disposition, you may be incurring real costs — the unit cannot be re-rented, or you are paying for separate storage. You can include reasonable storage costs in your ORT application, and the tribunal may order the former tenant to reimburse them.

Document your storage costs carefully: receipts for off-site storage, or the daily rental value of the unit if items remain in the property.

When the Tenant Abandoned the Unit

If the tenant did not formally surrender possession (no keys returned, no written notice, just disappeared), you first need to establish that the unit is genuinely abandoned. Check for signs of ongoing occupation: personal belongings, food in the fridge, mail being collected. Attempt contact through every available channel.

If you determine the unit is abandoned, secure it and begin the inventory and contact process. For the security-deposit deadline, the clock begins when you actually know or should reasonably have known that the tenant vacated the premises.

What Not to Do

Do not throw everything away immediately. Even items that look like rubbish to you may have value or sentimental significance to the former tenant.

Follow the right disposition process. For property worth over $1,500, obtain an ORT order before disposal. For property worth $1,500 or less, first make reasonable efforts to locate the tenant.

Do not withhold items as leverage. You cannot refuse to return a tenant's belongings to pressure them into paying arrears or signing a release.

The Saskatchewan Ending a Tenancy guide includes an abandoned property inventory worksheet and the ORT disposition application process.

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