Guide
For landlords and property managers
A death, a crime or a hoarded unit puts the owner in charge of getting the rental back to a livable state. Here is how the cleanup side usually works.
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South Dakota law
The owner's duty
Fit for human habitation
A residential landlord must keep the premises and common areas in reasonable repair and fit to live in, except damage caused by the tenant's negligent, willful or malicious conduct. A lease cannot waive this.
Source: SDCL 43-32-8
The coroner looks into many deaths at home
In South Dakota the county coroner investigates deaths by unnatural means and natural deaths of people who were not under a clinician's care. In those cases the body is not moved without the coroner's permission.
Source: SDCL 23-14-18 ยท SDCL 23-14-19
Checklist
What to do
- Wait for police and the coroner to release the unit.
- Secure the unit and limit who goes in.
- Tell your property insurer and ask what it needs.
- Contact the tenant's family or the estate about belongings.
- Ask the cleanup company for a written scope, photos and an itemized invoice.
- Check neighboring units and shared vents for odor or seepage.
Questions
Questions to ask the company
- What will you remove, and what can stay?
- How will you dispose of the waste?
- How do you handle the tenant's belongings?
- How do you confirm odor is gone before we repair and re-let?
- Can you work around other tenants in the building?