This is a question most of us have never asked ourselves, but perhaps we should. There are alarming amounts of people being found dead in their homes, sometimes they have lain there for a year or more. Is your neighbour next?

This disturbing phenomenon seems to be increasingly frequent. Below we have detailed 13 cases of neighbours who have been found dead in their homes. In all 13 cases the deceased were discovered since 2001, although 10 of them have been in the last 3 years! This alarming trend must be reversed!

Reclusive woman lay dead for 3 weeks.

The first case we have was found in 2001 and had lain dead for 3 weeks. The old lady was a recluse, apart from her 30 cats she lived entirely alone. The milkman reported something amiss when her milk had not been removed from the doorstep for “a few days”.

First reported here

Mother lay dead for “months”.

This case is particularly disturbing as it involves an 83 year old mother who lived with her handicapped son. There were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the lady’s death. Her son, who has a mental age of 10, is thought not to have known what to do when his mother passed away.

First reported here

Man lived in caravan with dead brother for 18 months.

A 72 year old man called police to report that he hadn’t seen his brother “for a couple of days” and he had found him dead. In actual fact his older brother had lain dead in the next room for 18 months! It is reported that the brothers, despite living together in a caravan led mainly separate lives.

First reported here

Man found 6 years after passing away

6, yes six, years after dying this 63 year old man was found fully clothed in his council flat. A succession of officials visited the flat to collect unpaid bills and the local council even declared his flat empty 5 years before his body was found.

First reported here

3 year old boy lay with dead mother for 2 weeks

When his mother died suddenly a 3 year old boy was unable to get out of the flat or to attract the attention of neighbours. The tragedy of a child of this age losing a parent is made all the greater by having to share a flat with the deceased for 2 weeks.

First reported here

Elderly Brother and Sister lay dead for two months

The alarm was raised by a friend of the pair who had not heard from them for some time. Neighbours very rarely saw the pair as, like so many others on this list, they were described as being rather reclusive.

First reported here

Dead for 2 years, but not missed

Neither friends nor neighbours reported anything amiss. The 40 year old woman lay in her tiny flat for 2 years with the heating and television on constantly. The grizzly truth was only uncovered when the local housing authority drilled the lock after rent arrears were flagged.

First reported here

Woman lay dead for one month

This 68 year old lady lay dead for one month in her rented one bedroom flat. Thankfully staff of the company who managed her rental flat raised the alarm promptly, it makes it no less tragic for her family.

First reported here

Man lay dead in his flat for up to a year

This man was only found when an eviction team from the council went to his flat. A local councillor appealed for a system to be implemented in order to avoid this occurring again in future.

First reported here

80 year old woman lay dead for nine months

Neighbours alerted authorities complaining of a bad smell, it is hard to believe that it took 9 months for them to notice. Unusually this case was treated as a potential murder, with the woman’s son being released on bail.

First reported here

Man lay dead in bed for two years.

It is not known how this man’s body was eventually discovered. His body was undetected for so long as all his bills were paid by direct debit and, like so many other people on this list was extremely reclusive.

First reported here

79 year old man lay dead for 2 months

This man’s body had to be identified by dental records. A neighbour alerted police after he had not seen the victim for some time.

First reported here

Pensioner lay dead for a year

Our last case involves an 81 year old woman who is believed to have lain dead for a year. The police were alerted after a relative called for a visit and found no answer. As with most cases on our list the death is not being treated as suspicious and again the victim was reclusive.

First reported here

Is this really necessary?

We have to ask ourselves as a society is there nothing we can do in this day and age to stop this from happening with such alarming frequency? Of these 13 British cases 10 of them occurred in the past 3 years, this hopefully is not a trend that will continue.

Do you have any ideas on how to remedy this ongoing tragic situation?

This place is quite possibly the least desired apartment in Europe.

Fritzl Basement Amstetten, Austria

Josef Friztl imprisoned his daughter here for 24 years. During this time the monster repeatedly raped his daughter making her pregnant 7 times! Sicko Fritzl’s trial is expected to start in autumn 2008. The last case of an Austrian psycho and a bunker was in 1945.

2. Gay Killer’s Grizzly Apartment

This apartment is today a in a posh part of London. The fact Dennis Nilsen lived here makes it worthless today. Dennis Nilsen murdered at least 15 men in 5 years. Only 3 of these victims were killed at this address but here he hid chunks of them around the apartment -- in his previous address he burnt them. He was only caught after neighbours complained of blocked drains. Britain’s worst serial killer at the time was stupid enough to try and flush human remains down the pan.

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Would you want to sit on a toilet which had been used to flush human remains? No? Neither would I.

3. Stuffed Full of Stuff

You think you’re messy and maybe you are, but not like this lot. Their apartments are packed to the roof full of junk. Everything that goes in, stays in. The only thing that ever comes out of the apartment is the hoarder themselves. When a hoarder comes out it is normally only to get more “stuff”.

This man's apartment will soon be even fuller. Photo: Andrea Gohl

Often hoarders are only identified when they’re found in their apartments, sometimes weeks after their passing. Enough said.

4. Live Animals Stuffed in Apartment

Imagine a hoarder, but they’re not happy with stuff -- no, these guys hoard animals. One litter tray is revolting enough if it is not emptied, imagine 300. Animal hoarders think nothing of stuffing an apartment wall to wall with dogs and cats. An animal hoarder will keep collecting cats, dogs and other pets until they are stopped. 300 cats in an apartment? 40 dogs? What a stench!!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=3quqq4S08eo

Would you want to stay there after that? No, me neither.

5. Growing Concern for Treehouses

There is a recent trend for treehouses, not like you had as a kid. No BIG treehouses, big enough to live in. Some of these treehouses are beautiful, luxury homes but there are very real dangers to life in the trees. Dutch Elm Disease, Honey Fungus and Fomes Butt Rot are just a few of the countless diseases that are infecting trees all over the world.

A Treehouse 35 feet up. Photographer: http://flickr.com/photos/jbergez/1460962579/

Even if you’re lucky and have a disease free tree, some idiot will start a forest fire.

6. Atomic Apartments

Yes, maybe there are pool tables, beer, girls and computer games BUT if you’re living in one of these apartments it is because your family, your home, your car and everything else you love has been melted by a thermonuclear explosion.

A Nuclear Bunker - photographer: http://flickr.com/photos/sedoglia/1240056393/

A nuclear holocaust probably wouldn’t put you in the mood for playing pool anyway.

7. Black and White: South Pole Apartments

Why black and white? Because you get six months of nighttime and when the six months of daylight comes everything is white How about one day and one night per year each of them lasting 6 months? No?

Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station

Average high annual temperatures are -50°F or -45°C, it is windy, there are no local shops. Hell has frozen over, it is at the South Pole.

8. Close Shaves in Brazilian Apartments

This is not what you may think! You seriously do not want to live in Rio de Janeiro.

A Favela in Rio de Janeiro

Roadjunky tells of his experiences:

A factor of living in third world countries like Brazil is that you can’t usually trust the police. They stopped and searched me a couple of times near my apartment in Rio de Janeiro. They couldn’t figure what a foreigner would be doing so close to a favela if not to buy drugs.

Corrupt police stopping you outside your own apartment?
No. Thank. You.

9. Haunted Apartments, What a Spectracle

55 Central Park West is at first glance a wonderful Art Deco apartment building. Look past the posh outside, I dare you! This is a sinister, ectoplasm-dripping, otherworld portal, scary ass building.

The Ghostbusters Apartment Building, New York

Would you choose to live in a building which demonic ghouls frequent? No, thought not.

10. John Lennon’s Last Six Hits? All Here

Maybe it has been called home by stars like Judy Garland, Boris Karloff, Roberta Flack, Steve Guttenberg and Neil Sedaka but the Dakota is a nasty piece of work as far as apartments go:

The Dakota Apartment Building, New York

The Dakota was “The Bramford” in Rosemary’s Baby and was also the location John Lennon chose to get himself assassinated. Would you like to live on the spot where John Lennon got his last 6 hits?