2019 Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes
Title 68 - REAL AND PERSONAL PROPERTY
Chapter 23 - Real Estate Foreclosure
Section 2307 - Post-sheriff's sale possessory action, effect of certification of vacancy and abandonment in action for possession and disposition of abandoned personal property

(a) Removal of personal property by former owner.--

(1) When a former owner relinquishes possession of mortgaged property certified as vacant and abandoned, the former owner shall remove from the mortgaged property all items of personal property.

(2) For the purposes of this section, a former owner shall be deemed to have relinquished possession when the former owner has:

(i) physically vacated the premises;

(ii) removed substantially all of the former owner's personal property; or

(iii) provided a forwarding address or written notice stating that the former owner has vacated the premises or otherwise communicated to the creditor that the former owner has relinquished possession of the mortgaged property.

(b) Removal of personal property by purchaser.--If the former owner fails to remove personal property from mortgaged property certified as vacant and abandoned after delivery of a sheriff's deed or a deed in lieu of foreclosure, concurrent with the filing of an action for possession or at any time after the action is filed, the purchaser may remove the remaining personal property of the former owner in the following manner:

(1) The purchaser shall serve notice of intent to remove personal property from the mortgaged property on the owner in the manner provided under section 2306(b) (relating to effect of certification of vacancy and abandonment).

(2) The purchaser shall conspicuously post on the property a personal property removal notice that includes:

(i) the date the notice was posted;

(ii) the address of the mortgaged property;

(iii) the date of the sheriff's sale or the date the title was acquired by the purchaser;

(iv) a notice that personal property that remains on the mortgaged property must be retrieved by the former owner;

(v) a statement that:

(A) The former owner has 10 days from the date of the notice to notify the purchaser that the former owner will be retrieving the personal property.

(B) If the intent to retrieve is conveyed to the purchaser, the personal property shall be retained by the purchaser at the mortgaged property or a site of the purchaser's choosing for 30 days from the date of the notice.

(C) If no communication is made to the purchaser within 10 days, the personal property may be disposed of at the discretion of the purchaser; and

(vi) a telephone number, e-mail address or facsimile number and address for the purchaser or its agent and the location where the personal property can be retrieved, if not at the mortgaged property, and a statement that retrieval of the personal property after 10 days will require the former owner to pay for costs related to the storage of the personal property.

(3) At all times between posting of the personal property removal notice and the expiration of the 10-day period, the purchaser shall exercise ordinary care with regard to any personal property that the former owner left in or on the mortgaged property.

(4) At the expiration of the 10-day period, the purchaser shall owe no duty to the former owner with regard to caring for the personal property and may, in the purchaser's discretion, dispose of the personal property subject to the following:

(i) If the personal property is sold and proceeds exceed any outstanding obligations owed to the owner or obligor, the proceeds shall be forwarded to the former owner by certified mail.

(ii) If no forwarding address has been provided to the purchaser by the former owner, the owner shall hold the proceeds for 30 days and, if unclaimed, may retain the proceeds.

(5) If the purchaser has issued a personal property removal notice to the former owner, the purchaser may store the former owner's personal property at another location within reasonable proximity to the mortgaged property subject to the following:

(i) If the purchaser stores the personal property at another location, the purchaser may remove the personal property from the mortgaged property by any means reasonably calculated to safeguard the personal property for the time period required under this section.

(ii) A former owner shall not be required to pay the costs related to the removal or storage of personal property by the purchaser if the former owner retrieves the personal property within 10 days of the date of the notice.

(6) If the former owner or occupant retrieves the personal property after 10 days of the date of the notice but before 30 days, the former owner shall pay any reasonable and actual costs related to the removal or storage of the personal property by the purchaser for that time period.