TL;DR
Eviction cleanouts are priced by volume like other junk removal, with heavily loaded units going higher. The legal storage period, not the volume, is usually what makes an eviction cleanout expensive. Budget for two visits, not one.
An eviction leaves behind a unit that nobody packed. Furniture, food, personal papers, and sometimes an entire household stay exactly where they were. Landlords who treat that as a normal cleanout are usually surprised by both the cost and the calendar.
How Much Does an Eviction Cleanout Cost?
An eviction cleanout for a one or two bedroom rental is usually one to two loads. Larger units, hoarding conditions, or biological contamination can push a single job well beyond two loads. Pricing follows truck volume plus any special handling the unit forces.
The spread is wide because eviction units vary more than move-out units. A tenant who left in an orderly way may leave one truckload. A tenant removed under court order may leave everything, including the contents of the refrigerator.
Landlords running multiple properties usually get better math from a standing arrangement than from one-off calls. That is covered in more depth under property manager contracts.
The Legal Step That Drives the Cost
In most states a landlord cannot simply discard a former tenant's belongings the day the sheriff posts the notice. Statutes typically require the landlord to store items of value for a defined period and to notify the tenant where those items are.
That requirement splits the work into two jobs. First, the crew separates and boxes anything that could be considered personal property with value and moves it to storage. Second, after the statutory window closes and nobody claims it, the crew hauls the remainder.
Two mobilizations means two trip charges. It also means storage rent for whatever is being held. Landlords who skip the hold and dispose of everything immediately expose themselves to a conversion claim that costs far more than the cleanout ever would. Check your own state's rule before scheduling, because the holding period and the value threshold both vary.
Eviction Cleanout Pricing by Unit Condition
Industry Baseline Range
| What is being priced | Published national range |
|---|---|
| Typical junk removal job, per load | $150 to $350 per load (most homeowners); $70 to $570 overall |
| Minimum load (up to 60 cu ft) | $70 to $100 |
| 1/4 load (80-120 cu ft) | $100 to $150 |
| 1/2 load (180-240 cu ft) | $200 to $300 |
| 3/4 load (300-360 cu ft) | $300 to $380 |
| Full load (420-480 cu ft) | $400 to $450 |
Source: HomeGuide, "Junk Removal Prices" national cost guide.
These are industry baseline ranges for planning only and may not reflect Otesse's price. Otesse pricing is calculated for your specific home and ZIP code, so enter your ZIP in the price box on this page for your instant price.
Current Market Reality
Actual invoices land above these baselines more often than below. Disposal tipping fees have risen sharply in most metro areas, and eviction loads are dense with mattresses, upholstered furniture, and mixed waste that carry per-item surcharges. Crews also bill for personal protective equipment, sharps handling, and the extra labor of sorting keepable property from trash.
What moves the price
| Unit condition | How it moves the price |
|---|---|
| Light, mostly empty unit | Lowest |
| Standard furnished one bedroom | About a half to full load |
| Furnished two or three bedroom | A full load or more |
| Heavy accumulation or hoarding | Several loads |
| Biohazard or pest remediation added | Highest, a separate specialty cost |
Every unit is different, so the real number depends on volume and condition. Enter your ZIP in the price box on this page for your instant price.
What Landlords Should Document Before the Crew Arrives
Photograph every room before anything moves. Date-stamped images protect you if the former tenant later claims a missing item of value.
Make a written inventory of anything you are placing in storage, with a brief description and condition note for each. Keep the storage receipt. Keep the notice you sent and proof of how you sent it.
Ask the hauler for an itemized invoice rather than a lump sum. If you intend to deduct the cleanout from a security deposit, most deposit statutes require line-item substantiation, and a one-line charge is the easiest thing for a tenant to challenge. Landlords tracking these numbers across a portfolio will find useful framing in turnover budgeting.
Conditions That Push an Eviction Job Into a Different Price Class
Three conditions turn a routine cleanout into a specialty job. Pest infestation requires treatment before removal, because hauling infested furniture through a building spreads the problem to other units. Biological contamination from bodily fluids, needles, or animal waste requires trained technicians and regulated disposal. Structural damage, including holes punched in drywall or removed fixtures, adds construction debris to what was supposed to be a furniture load.
Squatter situations bring their own complications, including unknown occupancy status and materials brought in from outside. Those cases are worth reading about separately in squatter cleanout situations.
Standard tenant departures cost far less. For a baseline comparison, see tenant cleanout cost for landlords.
FAQ
Who pays for an eviction cleanout?
The landlord pays the hauler up front. The cost can often be deducted from the security deposit or added to a money judgment against the former tenant, but collection is uncertain. Treat the cleanout as an out-of-pocket expense you may or may not recover.
Can I throw away everything the tenant left?
Usually not right away. Most states require you to store apparently valuable personal property for a set period and to notify the former tenant. Discarding protected items early can create liability that dwarfs the cleanout bill. Confirm your state's rule first.
How long does an eviction cleanout take?
The physical work on a typical one or two bedroom unit takes three to six hours with a two-person crew. The full process takes longer because of the statutory storage window, which commonly runs one to several weeks depending on jurisdiction.
Does a junk removal company handle the storage step?
Some do. Full-service operators will box, label, inventory, and transport belongings to a storage unit as a separate line item, then return for final disposal. Others only haul. Ask before booking so you are not left arranging the storage leg yourself.
Will hauling costs go up if the unit smells or has pests?
Yes. Odor and infestation both change how items must be handled, bagged, and disposed of, and they may require treatment before any crew will load anything. Expect a re-quote on arrival if you did not disclose these conditions when booking.
Getting an Evicted Unit Back to Rentable
The faster a unit is emptied, inspected, and repaired, the shorter the vacancy. For eviction and turnover cleanouts, see Otesse junk removal and ask about units that need sorting before disposal.
Send unit photos and your storage timeline when you request a written quote so the schedule matches your legal deadlines.
