Moving a mezuzah
Question:
May one take mezuzot – together with their internal parchments – from one house to another when one is moving? And if such an action is forbidden, what happens if such a thing did, in fact, occur? -- Leah Bar-El, Tel Aviv
Answer:
In principle, one should not do so.
However, the original owner of the mezuzot can request compensation from the new resident. Or, the original owner can replace his ornate mezuzot and cases with simpler – albeit still kosher – ones.
Please note that if the new resident is a non-Jew, the original owner may remove the mezuzot.
To answer your final question: If the mezuzot were removed, one should simply try not to do it again next time.
(Rabbi Shmuel Slotki)
