If the owner of the property is deceased without will, trust, etc. Property to be sold on courthouse steps- is preliminary notice still required and to whom would you?
1 reply
Dec 19, 2019
If the property owner is deceased and if there are no representatives of the estate, then notices that were supposed to be sent to the property owner would likely need to be sent to whoever is in charge of the project and has authorized the work to be done at the project property.
So, providing the requisite notice to everyone else on the project and asking other project participants, if there are any, could likely be a good start on ensuring that all rights are preserved. What's more, posting the notice to a conspicuous place on the property - like at the site office (if there is one), on the outside of the mailbox, and/or on the front door of the property might be a good step, too.
Unfortunately, though, Missouri's lien statute doesn't provide any guidance on how notice might be sent when the owner is deceased and when no other party, trust, estate, etc. is available to represent them.
For more on Missouri preliminary notice basics: Missouri Preliminary Notice Guide and FAQs.