What about a death in the rental unit? Does that have to be disclosed?
While there is no federal requirement to disclose a death that occurred on a rental property, a few states address this issue by statute which requires landlord disclosure of a death in a rental unit. In some disclosure states a landlord has the legal duty to truthfully answer a direct question from a prospective tenant or tenant regarding a death on the property. In other disclosure states, a landlord must volunteer information regarding a death in a rental unit. The disclosure requirement for a death in a rental unit may include death as a result of homicide, felony act, suicide, accidental death, and natural death.
In other states a death in a rental unit does not require a landlord to disclose such a fact to prospective tenants. A landlord will need to conduct due diligence for his state’s disclosure requirements. As example, the state of California requires landlord disclosure, if asked, of any deaths on the premises in the past three years. The landlord is not obligated to disclose a death that occurred more than three years ago.