[quote=sheilawellington]Update:
My sister talked to the tenant’s dad (his info was on the rent application). The dad confirmed that his son is in jail, that mom & dad have removed most of the tenant’s belongings, and that they have left the key under the mat.

(1) The fact that the key was returned is a good sign, I think. It means that the tenant has moved out and now it’s OK for me to go in, clean up, and change the locks. Right?

(2) BUT, it still worries me a little that we didn’t receive the keys from the tenant (who is in jail), but from his dad.

(3) The dad said that he couldn’t remove a couple of furniture pieces and an old TV. He said that I’m free to give them to charity. Still, this worries me b/c it means that the tenant is not 100% out of the house.

My sister will be talking to a real estate lawyer today. Thank you all for the feedback. I had a big laugh with that Nigerian scam post![/quote]

I think the real estate attorney idea is a good one. Consider the following:

Your contract is with the son. Unless he has given a power of attorney to his parents that you can rely on, they are not legally capable of speaking on behalf of the tenant, any more than any other person would be. What would you have done if it were the tenant’s best friend telling you this stuff? Would you have let him/her take furniture or belongings out without telling the police? You certainly wouldn’t take any of the stuff yourself. Since you are aware that they are removing things from his apartment and you don’t have any direct evidence from him that it is with his permission, you may have some duty to contact the authorities. Family relationships are odd things – and you don’t want to get in the middle.

If I were you, I wouldn’t move/take or touch a shred of the furniture. I would go through the standard eviction procedure, which should be rather straightforward since there doesn’t seem to be anyone in the apartment.

I’m not a real estate attorney. I’m curious to hear what yours has to say.