Kids leaving toys out

Hello all again....

One of the residents (actually a renter) is continually leaving out their kids scooters/toys. Yes I know I can sent letters and fine the unit but is there anything illegal about taking the items and donating them? They aren't marked with any indication of who owns them and they are in a public place (in the street).

I figure I am probably asking for trouble.

Yes you are, especially as you are asking permission on this site.

We had a similar issue on our property. Items left in the entryways, on the sidewalks, on the lawns, even on the stairs blocking access. I wanted to know if we could move the items, dispose of them, or put them in storage, so I asked our attorney who specializes in HOA issues. In most cases we did not know who the items belonged to.

Our attorney told us that if we took anything it would be "conversion" of property.

You will have to look up the legal definition of "conversion", but the short answer is all thefts are conversion, but not all conversions are theft. Our attorney told us not to take anything or else the owner of the property would have a legal case against us.

Our attorney advised us that to remove items left on the general common elements we must establish a policy, notify all residents of the policy via newsletter, give the residents time to follow the policy, and after all that only then can we remove items and place them in storage as specified by our policy. Then we must give the residents an opportunity to retrieve their items from storage, otherwise we have committed "conversion".

Our policy can state that items not retrieved from storage can be disposed of after a certain amount of time, or impound fees can be charged to retrieve items from storage, but all of that must be in the written policy made available to all residents.

If we don't do all that I just mentioned that is "conversion" and a legal case could be brought against the HOA by a resident for theft of property.

I have dealt with many lawyers and I know each one can tell you something different, but this is what our board was advised by the law firm that represents us.

Modify your rules and regulations to state that any toys left out and/or unattended will be collected and stored for safe keeping until the lawful owner can claim them. Designate the "storage area" in the rules. Do not fine or charge a fee for the return of the toys. Just make it a bit cumbersome to get them back. Most kids want their toys NOW. So, if Mommy or Daddy have to make a call, set up an appointment to get them back, the youngsters will learn to put them away. I am assuming your documents will allow this. I'm also assuming you are not going onto private property to collect the toys. If you are, you're stealing them. Beware.