It was 8:00 on an early September morning when Jen knocked on the manager's door. "Mrs. Righthouse, please come to the door," she called. Amanda Righthouse, the Spring Bloom Apartments on-site manager, answered the knock with a sleepy look. "How can I help you Jen?" she asked.

Jen winced and answered, "Mrs. Righthouse I have not seen Philip Higgenbottom for three days now. Usually I visit with him every morning, but he has not been responding to my door knocks. I am worried about him."

Mrs. Righthouse grumbled and responded, "I will be right with you. I need to fetch the keys."

The Spring Bloom Apartments is a 40 unit apartment property located in downtown Oceanside. It has a mix of tenants: some young, some retired, as well as a smattering of children. Most of the units are one bedrooms, and most of the tenants are single. As a community, they had formed a tight bond. They were like family, and looked in on, and took care of each other. Jen was 22 years old with a young baby. She had befriended Phillip Higgenbottom, an 80 year old, retired train conductor. Phillip Higgenbottom had loved her two year old son and had been like a grandfather to him, and in return Jen had loved Mr. H. and made sure he ate regularly including having breakfast with him every morning.

It was to Amanda Righthouse's credit that those tight bonds had formed. She too was worried that crisp September morning. Mr. H had not told her of any impending travels.

She knocked on his door. "Mr. H," she called, "are you there?"

There was no response. After much knocking, she decided to go in. She had been the manager of Spring Bloom Apartments for over 10 years, and had seen almost everything. Jen cowered behind her nervously. She had a knot in her stomach.

Amanda Righthouse turned the key and the door creaked open. They called out, "Mr. Higgenbottom?" There was no response. They walked into the clean and tidy, one bedroom apartment. They saw him sitting in a chair. The TV was on quietly. He looked very serene in his recliner, relaxed with his feet up. "Mr. H?" Jen asked. There was no response. They both realized that Mr. Higgenbottom had passed away. Amanda said, "Don't touch a thing we must call the police right away."

Jen was horrified "How can we leave him alone?" she asked. She started crying.

Mrs. Righthouse, on the other hand, sprang into action. She marched to her office and immediately called the police. They arrived within ten minutes, and took a report from both Jen and Mrs. Righthouse. Being a thorough individual, Mrs. Righthouse asked her longer-term tenants to update their emergency contacts annually. If anything happened, a close family member could easily be found. She looked into her tenant files and called the close cousin that Mr. H. had listed as a reference in his rental application. She had to leave a message as the cousin was not at home.

The Oceanside police officer then called the coroner. The coroner arrived in an hour and inspected the apartment. She looked for evidence of foul play and to see if anything was missing. She found Mr. Higgenbottom's wallet and confirmed his identity. Once she obtained the information regarding relatives from the manager, the coroner called her crew to take the body to the county morgue pending contact of Mr. Higgenbottom's next of kin. The coroner requested that the manager lock up the unit for two days, to give her some time to complete a more in depth investigation.

Jen, who had been waiting in the office, was still crying. Mrs. Righthouse consoled her. She told her how special Mr. H. had been and said, "Once we reach the next of kin, we can plan a special memorial here at the apartments for Mr. H." Mrs. Righthouse knew how close Jen and Mr. H had been. She typed up a letter to all of the tenants explaining that Mr. Higgenbottom had peacefully passed, and that there would be a memorial service as soon as the coroner released the body. She then stopped by every unit with the notice to explain and console the tenants.

Once she got back to the office, Mrs. Righthouse called the property management company, who in turn, notified the building owner. Since the death was peaceful and the proper persons had been contacted, the property managers instructed her to let the next of kin* sort things out through the balance of the month.

A month rolled by, and the apartment had been cleaned, painted, recarpeted, and redecorated. Mrs. Righthouse had advertised and found a new tenant for the unit. The new tenant was a single young man in his early 20s. On his first night, Jen brought him a "welcome cupcake" and he was very appreciative. Jen was pleased to have a new neighbor and a new friend for her son. The world seemed glued back in its place again at the Spring Bloom Apartments.

*Notes: It is important to establish who the legitimate next of kin are before the manager lets any of the belongings leave the property. If there is no next of kin, there are procedures that involve state agencies to make sure the estate is protected. Once the furniture and all goods have been removed, the manager then ensures the apartment is well-ventilated, deeply cleaned, and the walls painted.

If the death has been a violent one, for example by an accidental discharge of a firearm, there may be residual damage from bullets, or from blood, on the floor/carpet. In this case the manager should call a restoration company that is trained to deal with bodily fluids and putrification. They will most likely remove the carpeting and replace it as well as use thermal fogging or spraying, to break down odor molecules.

In a situation where violent death occurs, the manager may be faced with reporters. The usual procedure is to refer the reporters to the management office point persons. Most property management companies work on keeping a low profile in these situations.

Published: April 19, 2005

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Clifford A. Hockley is the President of Bluestone & Hockley Real Estate Services, one of the larger brokerage and property management companies in Portland, Oregon. Mr. Hockley holds an MBA Willamette University and a B.S. in Political Science from Claremont McKenna College. He is a Certified Property Manager and Bluestone & Hockley Real Estate Services is an Accredited Management Organization (AMO) by the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM). Mr.Hockley serves as member at large on the Portland IREM board. He has twice been named Certified Property Manager of the Year (2001 and 2003) by the Institute of Real Estate Management and is a frequent contributor to industry newsletters.