My landlord didn’t want to renew the lease and gave me a deadline to move out. Now that deadline has passed, but I haven’t found a place to move to, and my belongings are still in the house. When I stopped by yesterday, he had changed the lock and I can’t access some of my belongings. What should I do in this situation? Does he have the right to do this? Or am I the one at fault?
I experienced the same thing. My landlord wanted me to leave when the contract ended because he was going to sell the house, but I hadn’t found a place. I was two weeks late, and he threatened to take me to court. So, in your case, I can say it’s normal for them to create issues regarding the belongings, but changing the door is another level.
One of our relatives forgot to move their belongings from an old house, and the landlord came and piled everything into the basement. I’m not sure about the legal side, but it felt inhumane. Changing the lock seems a bit much though 
Here’s the thing: if your belongings are still in that house, your privacy has been violated. Not renewing the lease is one thing, but touching your personal belongings is a breach of boundaries. No one can leave you helpless. This is entirely a display of power.
I think you have a problem too. The guy clearly set a deadline, why didn’t you wrap things up earlier? Now it’s very hard to claim your rights, because technically, it seems like your right has expired.
Legally, a landlord cannot intervene without evacuating the tenant’s belongings even if the contract has expired. Changing the locks and preventing access to their belongings seems to be illegal. But I would definitely recommend consulting a lawyer for a clear solution.
Update: Let me add that I have special documents and some valuable items among my belongings. I called, but the guy just cut me off saying, ‘I already gave you 3 months, don’t ask for your stuff anymore.’ I’m feeling very uneasy right now.
I think there’s something else going on here. I wonder if the landlord rented that house to someone else? For example, could they have given the key to a new tenant? The door-changing situation is really strange.
Sweetheart, if it happened to me, I would sleep at the landlord’s door. Go right away, grab your things and get out. The longer you prolong such things at the beginning, the worse it will get later.
But if your belongings are at home, do you still count as using that house? I think you do, so I believe they can’t evict you. So even if the contract ends, you still have rights, right?