When a landlord passes away, tenants usually face two possible outcomes: either the new landlord honors the existing lease, allowing them to stay, or the lease is canceled, forcing them to find a new place to live. However, for 75-year-old Jane Sayner, things took an unexpected turn.
Jane had been living in a two-bedroom apartment in St. Albans, Melbourne, Australia, for over twenty years. Her landlord, multimillionaire John Perrett, charged her a rent of AUD$250 per week, a rate that hadn’t changed since she moved in. Jane had retired after 25 years at her job, and the thought of returning to work just to pay rent was daunting. But Jane was about to receive a surprising reprieve.
John Perrett passed away in September 2020. Despite his wealth, he never married or had children. Thirty years before his death, John had undergone a life-saving kidney transplant, which extended his life and inspired him to leave a significant portion of his fortune—around AUD$18.6 million—to the Royal Melbourne Hospital’s Nephrology Department.
John also owned a flat that he left to the Royal Melbourne Hospital, which was sold for AUD$400,000. However, he had other plans for his long-term tenants. To Jane’s astonishment, John left her the two-bedroom apartment she had rented for decades.
Jane had an inkling about John’s intentions when he called her one day asking for her full name. “My solicitor’s here, can you please give me your full name because I’m leaving you your unit,” John had said. Jane could hardly believe it. She recalled, “For the whole time I had known him, leaving all his money to charity was always what he was going to do.”
Despite the sadness of John’s passing, Jane felt immense relief and gratitude knowing the apartment was now hers. Over the years, she had made the space her own, adding a garden in the backyard where there was none. “I treated this place like it was my own. I planted lots of plants and flowers, which are still here today,” Jane shared.
John encouraged Jane to make the place feel like home, even bringing her old pots from his father’s collection for her to use. Their relationship went beyond that of landlord and tenant—they were friends. John often shared stories about his father, and Jane would sometimes cook for him.
John, who was an only child, had found a sense of family in Jane. Leaving her the apartment was a testament to the friendship and trust they had built over the years.
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