After a judge issues an eviction order, the tenant must remove all personal property by the date and time specified in the court order. W.Va. Code §55-3A-3(f).
If the tenant fails to remove the personal property, the landlord must preserve it and allow the tenant to take possession of it. W.Va. Code §55-3A-3(h). The landlord has several options on how to do this:
1. The landlord may remove and store the personal property and may charge the tenant reasonable costs for the storage
2. The landlord may dispose of the property after storing the property for thirty days, if the tenant fails to pay the reasonable cost of storage and has not taken possession of the stored property or if the storage costs equal the value of the personal property being stored
3. The landlord may leave the personal property on the premises and, after thirty days, the landlord may dispose of the property if the tenant has not paid the landlord the reasonable costs of leaving the personal property on the landlord’s premises and has not taken possession of the personal property
If the personal property is worth more than three hundred dollars ($300) and was not removed by the tenant after thirty days, the landlord must store the property for up to an additional thirty days if the tenant, or any person with a security interest in the personal property, informs the landlord of intent to remove the personal property. The tenant, or the person holding a security interest in the personal property, is responsible for paying a reasonable cost of storage and removal to the landlord. W.Va. Code §55-3A-3(i).
A landlord is only legally permitted to throw away a tenant’s possessions during the waiting period when the tenant informs the landlord in writing that the personal property is abandoned or the property is garbage. W.Va. Code §55-3A-3(h)(1).