[§521-85] Death of a tenant; notice.
(a) As part of the rental agreement or in a separate written instrument, a
tenant may designate the name and contact information, including mailing
address, of a representative authorized by the tenant to collect or dispose of
the tenant's personal property within the dwelling unit if the tenant dies
during the tenancy.
(b) Upon the death of the tenant or, in the
case of multiple tenants, the death of all tenants, the landlord shall contact
the representative by registered mail and any other contact information
provided by the tenant to provide notice pursuant to subsection (c). In the
absence of a written designation of a representative by the deceased tenant,
the landlord shall send notice to the estate of the deceased tenant at the
address of the dwelling unit. If upon delivery of the notice to the estate, an
individual comes forward and provides the landlord with a court order
evidencing the individual's authority to act as a representative for the
deceased tenant, the individual shall be considered the representative for the
purposes of this section. In the absence of a written designation of a
representative by the deceased tenant or the designated representative or
representative of the deceased tenant's estate does not come forward, a family
member who comes forward shall be considered the representative for the purposes
of this section.
(c) The notice required under this section
shall contain the following information:
(1) The name of the deceased tenant, the address of
the dwelling unit, and that the representative, if any, was identified by the
tenant to collect or dispose of the tenant's personal property in the event of
the tenant's death;
(2) The approximate date of the deceased tenant's
death;