Key Takeaways
- Florida landlords must follow strict legal eviction procedures or risk penalties and having the eviction case dismissed.
- The required eviction notice depends on the reason for eviction, such as nonpayment of rent, lease violations, or the end of a tenancy.
- Tenants may avoid or challenge eviction if they correct certain lease violations or have valid legal defenses, such as discrimination or retaliation.
- Only a court-issued writ of possession allows a sheriff to remove a tenant if they do not leave after an eviction judgment.
The Florida landlord-tenant laws give both landlords and tenants a series of rights and responsibilities. One such right is to evict a tenant for a rental agreement violation. Common rental agreement violations in the state of Florida include:
- Failure by the tenant to pay rent.
- Surpassing the term of the rental agreement without agreeing with the landlord.
- Foreclosure of the rental property.
- Failure by the tenant to uphold the terms of the rental agreement.
- Failure by the tenant to uphold their responsibilities under Florida law.
- Breach of the Fair Housing Laws.
To evict a tenant for any of these reasons, landlords must strictly adhere to the Florida eviction process. Otherwise, the case would not only fail, but landlords may also find yourself on the wrong side of the law.
In fact, according to Fla. Stat. Ann. § 83.67, landlords may be liable for paying actual damages or a penalty equal to 3 months’ rent, whichever is greater.
Providing Notice for a Lease Termination
The process starts when the landlord sends an eviction notice. The notice that your tenant is served with must be appropriate for the violation they have committed. Serving the wrong eviction notice will only delay the eviction and consequently give the tenant more time to live in their rented premises.
The following are some of the legal grounds for eviction in Florida and the appropriate notices that the landlord must serve to start the eviction process:
Nonpayment of Rent
One ground for eviction in Florida is a failure by the tenant to pay on time. In Florida, rent becomes late immediately after its due date, which is at the beginning of each pay period.
When the payment becomes late, the landlord can start the eviction process if they want to evict the tenant. The landlord must do so by serving the tenant with the 3-Day Notice to pay Rent or Quit. This will give them two options: pay the overdue rent or move out.
Surpassing the Rental Term
The landlord can also evict a tenant who refuses to leave after their rental term has ended or in the absence of a written rental agreement. To start the eviction proceedings, the landlord must serve the tenant proper notice. The amount of notice depends on the frequency of payments.
Here is some more detail:
- Fifteen Day Notice to Quit: The landlord must serve this notice to a tenant who pays rent on a month-to-month basis.
- Seven Day Notice to Quit: The landlord must serve this notice to a tenant who pays rent on a week-to-week basis.
- Thirty Day Notice to Quit: The landlord must serve this notice to tenants who pay rent on a quarter-to-quarter basis.
- Sixty Day’ Notice to Quit: The landlord must serve this notice to tenants who pay rent on a year-to-year basis.
The notice does not give the tenant any other option than to leave once the period is over, in this case, it’s also best to consult the Florida security deposit laws.
Foreclosure of the Rental Property
If a rental property is foreclosed upon, the incoming landlord can choose to evict the tenant. To do so, they will need to start the eviction process by serving the tenant with a 30-days’ written notice.
After the notice period, the incoming landlord can proceed with the eviction action by moving to court.
Violation of the Lease
Florida landlords can also evict a tenant in Florida for violating specific terms of the lease or rental agreement according to Florida statutes. The type of notice to serve depends on the category of the violations, as described below.
Curable Violations
Curable violations are ones that a tenant could resolve without the need for eviction. In this case, the landlord must serve the tenant with a Seven Day Notice to Cure or Vacate. The notice gives them an opportunity to fix the violations they have committed within a week.
- Unauthorized Parking.
- Subletting when it is prohibited.
- Smoking when there is a no-smoking policy.
- Living with unauthorized pets.
- Exceeding any occupancy limits.
- Not keeping to cleanliness standards.
Incurable Violations
Incurable violations are those that directly break the lease in Florida and do not leave the tenant with the ability to resolve the issue. In this case, the landlord must serve them a 7-Days Unconditional Quit Notice. If the tenant fails to leave after the 7 days are over they face eviction action.
- Using the property for illegal activities.
- Causing negligent or careless property damage.
- Repeated curable violations that can deteriorate the landlord-tenant relationship.
Serving a Tenant with an Eviction Notice
When serving an eviction notice to a tenant, the landlord must do so in any of the following ways:
- Deliver the notice to the tenant in person.
- Mail a copy of the notice to the tenant via either registered mail, certified mail, or regular mail.
- Leave a copy of the notice in a conspicuous place at the rental premises.
After you have posted the proper written notice, the tenant will need to honor the written notice or else risk getting evicted.
Defenses for Tenant Eviction
If a tenant has a legal defense, they may be able to delay or dismiss an eviction complaint. The following are the common defenses in the state of Florida:
- You tried to evict the tenant from their rented premises by locking them out, changing the door locks, shutting off essential services or any other illegal eviction method.
- Your tenant has evidence that you discriminated against them.
- You retaliated against the tenant for exercising any of the fundamental rights. Such rights include reporting you to a government agency regarding habitability violations and withholding rent when their repair requests are ignored.
- The eviction notice has errors. For example, it does not mention the notice period or what the tenant must do within the notice period.
- You have failed to maintain the unit to habitable standards.
Any of these defenses are acceptable under Landlord-Tenant Law, but if you have any questions, please seek professional legal counsel.
Writ of Possession
If the court rules in your favor, a writ of possession will be issued and the eviction process will continue. The writ of possession gives the tenant a final chance to move out on their own. If they do not, the writ of possession gives the sheriff authority to forcefully conduct the eviction.
Bottom Line
Understanding how the Florida eviction laws work is an important part of being a landlord from the beginning, the eviction lawsuit to the final judgement. So, if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact a leading property management company such as TrueNest Property Management.
Disclaimer: Please note that the information provided in this blog is intended for general guidance and should not be considered as a replacement for professional legal advice. It is important to be aware that laws pertaining to property management may change, rendering this information outdated by the time you read it.