If your a tenant in an foreclosure home completely out of the loop an the bank pad lock the house with your property still inside an after s...

Question

If your a tenant in an foreclosure home completely out of the loop an the bank pad lock the house with your property still inside an after several weeks an attempts to call and make arrangements to get your stuff someone breaks in an steal your things who if anyone is liable can I be reimbursed for my stolen property

Answer

This would be a difficult case against the company that padlocked the property. On the one hand, you would argue that they thwarted your attempts to remove your belongings and thus enabled the thief. They would argue that it was not foreseeable that there would be a break in--that the padlocking should have reduced those possibilities. Your counterargument to that would be that if it was obvious from the outward appearance of the property (foreclosure signs, etc) that it was in that status and unoccupied, it becomes an attractive target for thieves. You could take your chances in small claims court which can award up to $5000 in provable damages, which means you'd have to be able to prove the current value of the property in addition to the liability of the foreclosure company.