Answer
Wa `alaykum As-Salamu waRahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
In this fatwa:
The death of the lessor doesnโt affect the validity of the contract.
Answering your question, the General Iftaaโ Department in Jordan, states the following:
A rent contract is among the binding contracts with a specific period of rental during which none of the contracting parties may terminate it, save with the approval of the other.
Accordingly, the death of the lessor doesโnt affect the validity of the contract because the ownership of the rented property is transferred to his heirs, so the leassee may benefit from it in return for paying the agreed upon sum.
Ash-Shirbini, a Shafi`i scholar, said:
โThe validity of a rent contract isnโt nullified by the death of the contracting parties, or one of them; rather, it continues until the specified period at which the rental ends, because it is as binding as a sale contract.โ
Accordingly, the afore-mentioned heirs donโt have the right to terminate the rent contract in question because the lessor passed away.
Almighty Allah knows best.