An elderly tenant passed away in my apt. She was there 3 weeks before being found. She was laying in the bathroom on a tile floor.

Any recommendations as to how to get rid of the smell?

all kidding asude I might call the coroners office in your county/city and ask.

or.....call Servicemasters...or a similar disaster recovery outfit. google 'em up.

Bio-hazard clean up is my guess. Check with your insurance agent ... doubt it's covered but you never know. They may be able to give you some phone numbers for folks to call at least.

new floor and maybe subfloor.

Maybe it isn't such a bad thing to be involved with the tenants. I guess it depends on how many units you have. I take it you were following up on late rent? Just wondering more about the situation.

Her family came thru and removed all her belongings and returned the keys. Unless I hear otherwise I will proceed with the clean up, and hope there are no further problems.

Jo,

The proverbial horse is already out of the barn if the family has been through and cleaned out the place... but i'll state it anyways for the record/the future/anyone else who stops by this thread: do NOT ever allow ANYONE into a tenant's unit unless they are a court appointed executor. What if this lady has a will that says, "All my stuff should be donated to 1st Church of Allentown?" Oh dear....now you've gone and helped thieves get inside and steal stuff if you provided them access.

Maybe we think tenants have nothing worthwhile, but the value of the estate is immaterial. And who knows? These little old ladies sometimes keep collections of silver coins or wads of cash stuffed in mattresses. When my MIL's mom died, they went thru her house (MIL was court-appointed executor) and found all kinds of stuff. She was a child of the Depression and didn't trust banks. Wads of cash all over. Things turned sour quickly when other local members of "the family" showed up and started carting things off with nothing more than "MeeMaw always said I could have this..." What a mess! The family doesn't speak to each other any more...and her total estate, including the house, was only worth about $50,000. Imagine how many lawyers would've gotten involved if she'd had another $50K tucked away in a mattress or under the TV stand!

...do NOT ever allow ANYONE into a tenant's unit unless they are a court appointed executor. ...

...do NOT ever allow ANYONE into a tenant's unit unless they are a court appointed executor. ...

Mordy of NJ, Call the funeral home that handled the arrangements for the lady. Have a good conversation with him or her. Ask if he knows if there is a legally appointed representative of her estate. Also ask him/her the best way to eliminate the odor and the possible contamination issues. He or she may talk to you or they may tell you it's private info. If it's private info could you please pass my name and number onto the legal representative and ask them to contact me.

You are doing some fishing for information for a few reasons. To find out who is responsible for the removal of her stuff. And who is responsible for paying for the clean-up. NOW none of this may matter to you because you want it done properly. When you enter the unit to install an ozone generator or have a professional company clean the bathroom. Post a 24 hour notice to enter, this will be your paper trail IF the family blames you for taking something from the unit.

Also get bags of charcoal place the bag of charcoal on a large plastic bag and cut the charcoal bag open now the charcoal will absorb odors too. Start with a bag at the front and back door.

Also once you enter the unit use vicks rub place it under your nose. A funeral director friend mentioned this to me to help reduce the odor in the unit.

Remember its not the dead to fear but those that are living.

When you paint use an odor primer, first paint the entire unit with the primer then paint your finish cost of your choice.

If you have carpet in the unit remove the carpet and pad, then replace with a click vinyl or hardwood of your choice.

Google whats the best way to remove body related items from your flooring. This may help you decide how to handle the clean up.

Seeing potentially more problems here.

Son says to LL, "We are all done clearing out the rental and it is OK to throw "this" out. Then, Sister files suit against the LL saying "this" was worth $$$...

Would anyone have reference to the correct wording or legal form to use when verifying the authority of the person representing the deceased?

With so many potential problems - no need for a LL to take direction from someone that the family has not authorized.

Scott, in Pennsylvania, the only person with authority over a decedent's estate will be appointed by the court ... check with the Register of Wills or have the person supply you with a "Short Certificate".