Tenant Abandoned Property Laws in Wisconsin

In Wisconsin, a landlord who told the tenant at signing that left-behind items will not be stored may presume them abandoned and dispose of them in any appropriate manner, except prescription medicine and medical equipment, which must be held 7 days.

Last checked October 2026. General information, not legal advice.

Written notice required: No, if the lease-signing notice was given; The landlord must give written notice when the lease is signed or renewed that items left behind will not be stored. Notice before disposal is required for manufactured or mobile homes and titled vehicles.
Holding period: No holding period (7 days for prescription medicine); Prescription medication and prescription medical equipment must be held 7 days from discovery.
After the holding period: Dispose of it in any appropriate manner; If sold, proceeds minus sale and storage costs may be sent to the state Department of Administration. The tenant may redeem items before disposal by paying the landlord's costs.

Sources

Last checked October 2026

The rules in Wisconsin

Does a landlord in Wisconsin have to notify the tenant before disposing of left-behind property?

No, if the lease-signing notice was given. Written notice required in Wisconsin: no, if the lease-signing notice was given. The landlord must give written notice when the lease is signed or renewed that items left behind will not be stored. Notice before disposal is required for manufactured or mobile homes and titled vehicles.

How long must a landlord in Wisconsin keep a tenant's abandoned property?

Holding period in Wisconsin: No holding period (7 days for prescription medicine). Prescription medication and prescription medical equipment must be held 7 days from discovery.

What can a landlord in Wisconsin do with abandoned property after the waiting period?

After the holding period in Wisconsin: Dispose of it in any appropriate manner. If sold, proceeds minus sale and storage costs may be sent to the state Department of Administration. The tenant may redeem items before disposal by paying the landlord's costs.

Where do the Wisconsin tenant abandoned property laws come from?

The rules above come from Wis. Stat. 704.05(5). Each source is linked on this page. We last checked them in October 2026.

Good to know

If the landlord did not give the lease-signing notice, the older 2009 version of the statute applies to left-behind property.

What this means in practice

Before treating anything as abandoned, confirm that the tenancy has actually ended. Some statutes define when a unit counts as abandoned, and removing property while a tenant still has a right to possession can expose a landlord to claims for wrongful eviction or conversion.

Keep a written record. Photos or a video of the items, a dated inventory, a copy of any notice sent and proof of how it was delivered make it much easier to show that the required steps were followed if the former tenant later asks for the property or its value.

Store items safely and in a reasonable way during any holding period. Where a statute allows the landlord to charge reasonable moving and storage costs, or to keep sale proceeds to cover those costs, the rules on what may be charged and what happens to any surplus vary, so check the exact text for your state.

General information, not legal advice. Laws change, and cities can add their own rules, so check the current statute before you rely on it.

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