A grieving family received an $8,000 bill for rent at their father’s senior living home after his death, leaving them shocked by the unexpected charge until NBC10 Boston Responds stepped in to help challenge it.
Some senior living facilities may require 30 days’ notice to end a lease, even in the case of death, which can cost families thousands of dollars.
“How was I supposed to know 30 days in advance that my father was going to pass away? It’s nuts,” said Bradford Kelley.
Kelley reached out after he received an email from the Atria Senior Living facility in Falmouth, Massachusetts, where his father was living when he passed away. The email notified Kelley that his family owed just over $8,000 for October rent. The email came three weeks after his father died in September 2024.
NBC10 Boston
NBC10 Boston A split screen showing a family photo of Bradford Kelley’s father and the Atria Woodbriar Place senior living facility
“I’m like why would I owe for October? He wasn’t there one day in October, why would he owe for October?” Kelley said.
The facility’s business director explained in an email to Kelley that the lease stipulates that the facility requires 30 days written notice to vacate and, in this case, the date of passing initiates the 30 days automatically.
“Atria does not expect residents to predict when they will pass, so when someone does, they are not required to give written notice because the date of passing pushes the notice automatically,” wrote the business director in an email. “These terms were agreed to at the time of signing the lease.”
“It’s terrible, it was absolutely just a shock, disheartening, just a blow,” said Kelley.
If you have a consumer problem, contact NBC10 Boston Responds by filling out our online consumer complaint form. We will get back to you!
The Kelley family reached out to NBC10 Boston Responds for help after they said they received collection notices. After we reached out, nearly a year after their father’s death, the family said Atria agreed to waive the balance of $8,036.77.
The company did not respond to our requests for comment about the decision or their policy.
“It’s great that they decided to waive it, but it’s been a year of collection calls and letters to me, almost harassing me to pay this amount,” said Kelley. “It was an awful thing to have to go through and I hope this helps other people out there so they don’t have to go through a similar thing.”
The consumer takeaway: when looking into nursing homes or assisted living homes, be sure to analysis what is expected when the resident dies under the residency agreement.
This year two legislative bills have been filed in Massachusetts that aim to limit the number of days a facility can charge for after a resident’s death to 10 days.
Senate Bill S494, filed by Senator John C. Velis, would prohibit the enforcement of a 30-day notice of vacancy policy in the event of the resident’s death. It would limit the assisted living residence from collecting rent and fees beyond 10 days from the date of the resident’s death.
Senate Bill S2701, filed by Senator Mark C. Montigny, would prohibit facilities from requiring notice to terminate a written residency agreement upon the death of a resident. Ten days would be provided for the removal of personal belongings without charges, expenses or other assessments due under a written residency agreement, following the death of a resident.
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