What happens if your Landlord dies? What about your stuff if you don't have a lease?

Here is a tip for snowbirds, who rent the same house every year: Do not leave your personal stuff in the house or have a lease for the entire year!

Here are two recent cases of snow bird renters that I, personally, know. There is a third that I do not know if it is true.

1. Person A rents a house and has a lease for an entire year, though she only lives in it for six months. The landlord gives her a reasonable monthly rate and she keeps the home full of her personal items and parks a Jalisco plated car there. The landlord died, and she had a lease, so she was able to keep the house until the lease ran out. Her personal belongings were safe, and she could prove what was hers because she had an inventory and photos of the rental without her items.

2. Person B rents a home for six months a year, at a premium winter rate, and has done so for four years. The Landlord and tenants are very happy with eachother so the landlord does not rent the house for the other six months of the year. Person B has a lease agreement for only six months of the year, but leaves their personal belongings in the house. There is about 2000 dollars worth of personal items and a lot of them have emotional attachment associated with them. The Landlord died during the months when the lease is not in effect. There is no Mexican Will so the property will go into probate. They have been told by the American executor of the American Will there is nothing they can do about obtaining their belongings.

3. (This is just a third hand story so I do not know if it is true). Person C does not have a lease of any kind. They were renting from a good friend. The landlord died. The tenant was away. The executor cleaned out the house with all of the personal items of person C given away or sold.

So: If you have a similar relationship with your landlord, to that of person B, consider having it changed to a yearly Lease agreement.

I recommened that the snowbirds (Person B) contact a lawyer to see if there is anything they can do to get their personal belongings from the house. They are broken hearted that their landlord died, as well. Very sad.

another joy of renting