What happens if a tenant dies?

We found no rule in Alberta's Residential Tenancies Act that ends a tenancy when a tenant dies, and none that sets a special notice period for a death. The Act's definition of a tenant includes the tenant's heir, assign or personal representative, which suggests the executor deals with the landlord about the rent and the end of the tenancy (our reading; neither the Act nor the government guides say so directly). The Act's usual deadline for returning a security deposit is 10 days after the tenant gives up possession, but it does not say how that applies after a death.

A separate law can apply. If the home was rented under a written agreement in the deceased tenant's name only, the Wills and Succession Act lets a surviving spouse or adult interdependent partner keep living there for 90 days after the death, and a court can extend that. During that time the estate is treated as the tenant for the rent and the security deposit, and the estate cannot end the tenancy without the partner's consent or a court order.

BC's Residential Tenancy Act counts a deceased tenant's estate as the tenant. The executor or administrator becomes responsible for the rent and the tenant's other obligations, but does not become the new tenant. For a month-to-month or other periodic tenancy, the executor can end it with the tenant's one month notice. On a fixed-term lease, the executor deals with the tenancy until the end of the term unless both sides agree to end it sooner, and can sublet or assign it with the landlord's written permission. The executor can act for the estate at the Residential Tenancy Branch but has to show proof of that authority.

If no executor comes forward, the abandonment rules may apply once rent has gone unpaid for at least one continuous month, and the landlord can refer the estate to the Public Guardian and Trustee. The Residential Tenancy Branch also lists a landlord's suspicion that a tenant has died as a situation where calling the police may be appropriate.

When a tenant who rented alone dies, the tenant's personal representative can end the tenancy with a notice of termination of at least one rental payment period, taking effect on the last day of a rental period. If one of several tenants dies and the others cannot reasonably pay the rent on their own income, the remaining tenants can give the same notice.

Manitoba's Act includes a tenant's heirs and personal representatives in its definition of a tenant. For questions about the belongings and the deposit, contact the Residential Tenancies Branch. With no claim against it, a deposit and its interest are due back within 14 days after the tenancy ends.

Saskatchewan's Residential Tenancies Act counts a deceased tenant's estate as the tenant. We found no other rule about a tenant's death in the Act: death is not on its list of ways a tenancy ends. Our reading is that the estate stands in the tenant's place until the tenancy is ended in one of the listed ways, but no government page confirms this, so check with the Office of Residential Tenancies.

The Act also has a general duty on a landlord to take reasonable steps to keep its own losses down. For how to end the tenancy and what happens to the belongings, contact the Office of Residential Tenancies before acting.

If a tenant dies and there is no other tenant, the tenancy is treated as ended 30 days after the death, and no one has to give notice. If there are other tenants, the tenancy carries on with them. A spouse who lived in the unit as their main home becomes a tenant unless they move out within those 30 days.

During the 30 days, the landlord must keep the tenant's belongings safe (anything unsafe or unhygienic is the exception) and give the executor or administrator, or a family member if there is none, reasonable access to remove them. Once the tenancy has ended, the landlord can sell, keep or dispose of what is left, but for six months after the death the estate or family can claim the money from any sale, less the landlord's reasonable costs and any rent owed. The landlord and the executor can agree on a different arrangement. The general rule that a last month's rent deposit is applied to the rent for the last period also applies; we found no Ontario rule that deals with the deposit specifically after a death.

We found no rule about a tenant's death in New Brunswick's Residential Tenancies Act, and it sets no special notice period for one. Its rules on belongings left behind do not mention death, and the Act allows disposal only in set cases, such as when a residential tenancies officer authorizes it, so ask the Tenant and Landlord Relations Office before removing or disposing of anything.

The deposit is held by the province, not the landlord. To have a deceased tenant's deposit returned, the application must include a copy of the will and the death certificate; if there is no will, the person applying fills out an Indemnity Letter instead. The Tenant and Landlord Relations Office can explain the next steps.

If a tenant with a year-to-year or fixed-term lease dies and there is no other tenant, the tenancy ends on the last day of the rental period after the one in which the tenant died, and no notice is needed. The Act has no separate rule for a month-to-month or other periodic tenancy, and we found no official guidance on how one ends after a death. Its definition of a tenant includes a tenant's heir, assign or personal representative, so ask the Residential Tenancies Program how to proceed.

If belongings are left behind and no new address or email is known, the landlord sends a copy of the abandoned property notice to the next of kin named in the lease, if there is one. The security deposit, with interest, is due within 10 days after the lease ends.

A PEI tenancy does not end automatically when a tenant dies, and the Act counts the tenant's personal representative as the tenant. On a fixed-term lease, notice can be given to end it because of the death, with evidence of the death. It takes effect no earlier than one month after the landlord receives it, on the day before rent is due. A month-to-month tenancy ends with the ordinary one-month notice. The landlord must keep the information about the death confidential and destroy it after 60 days.

When a fixed term is ended this way, any co-tenants also have to leave unless they sign a new agreement with the landlord. The deposit, with interest, must be returned (or a claim filed with the Rental Office) within 15 days after the tenancy ends.

Under the province's policy, the tenancy continues on the same terms after a tenant dies until it is ended under the Act. If no joint tenant survives, it can be ended with one month's notice and evidence of the death, using the Tenant's Notice to Terminate Early (Special Circumstance). The notice must be signed, given by the first day of a rental period and end on the last day of a rental period. Under the same policy, a surviving joint tenant is responsible for all of the obligations of the rental agreement.

The province's policy is that a deceased tenant's belongings are not abandoned property. The landlord should get proof that a person is the executor before letting them remove anything, and if there is no representative, the landlord can apply to the Supreme Court to have the Public Trustee appointed. The deposit is due back within 10 days after the unit is vacated.