ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (KDVR) — An Englewood family is devastated after their deceased loved one was charged for breaking a lease.
Desiree Trujillo told FOX31 that she misses her father every day.
“Because of my mom passing away when we were younger children, it was just my dad and my brother and myself,” she said.
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Now, in addition to coping with the heartbreaking loss, Trujillo said the apartment management where he lived is charging a fee for breaking the lease.
“I felt angry. How could somebody deliver a bill when you guys know this person is deceased?” Trujillo said.
What happens to a rental lease after death?
Legal experts say that while lease agreements outline fees and charges for a range of circumstances, landlords can use judgment in unique cases.
“Technically, for lack of a better term, it is a lease break. But there is a frustration of purpose in obviously the tenant did not realize, most likely, that they were going to die in the middle of the lease,” said Kayla Banzali of Robinson and Henry .