Q: Tenant died while living in my house. After 40 days, his son was appointed Executor of estate. The court told us they had a reasonable amount of time to get his belongs out of house. Should I be reimbursed for the 6 months (rent) it took to get my house back? Nothing was in writing.

A: Damages are normally spelled out in the rental agreement. Under common law in PA, if there is no written lease, each party needs to give 30 days’ notice, as it is a month to month lease. Although you have no written lease, taking 6 months to vacate an apartment seems excessive. You may have a claim if you notified the son/Executor to vacate and his taking so long was no fault of your own. Since there is an estate opened, you can file a written claim with the estate for your damages, which is much easier than filing a civil complaint. I would review all of the facts with a lawyer.