Dead woman alone in house for years shocks Sydney

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When Natalie Wood died in her home in a trendy inner Sydney suburb, nobody noticed for almost a decade.

Ms Wood's neighbours thought the elderly woman had moved out years ago, leaving the house empty.

Utility companies cut off her power and water. Centrelink continued to pay her benefits but her bank account remained untouched.

She had stopped speaking to her one remaining relative in 2003, the result of a family feud.

Police won't reveal exactly what happened, but a few days ago her sister-in-law was prompted to contact police, resulting in the grisly discovery of Wood's skeletal remains on the floor of an upstairs bedroom in a Surry Hills terrace on Tuesday afternoon.

"I do think it's unusual [that no one had noticed] ... I think it's very, very sad," said Superintendent Zoran Dzevlan. "There are no other relatives we know of except for the sister-in-law."

NSW Police Minister Mike Gallacher called on Sydney to reinvigorate its neighbourhood watch programmes to prevent any more lonely deaths.

"It really does highlight the need for this state and indeed our community to work closer at building relationships with our community," he said.

"To hear today that an elderly lady can pass away, be dead for eight years and for Centrelink to still be sending cheques to her bank account and for those cheques not to be cashed - surely that must set off the alarm bells within government."

Gallacher said local government should also have noticed rates were not being paid.

Police said they would check the last energy bill to try to determine the time of her death.

Dzevlan said the woman's mail had been redirected to her sister-in-law but that had eventually stopped.

Centrelink payments had not been touched.

Police said most people who lived nearby had believed Wood's house was unoccupied.

A coroner's report will be prepared.

- AAP