Laws in Florida Concerning Renters
- Florida law governs what rights renters have.florida secret image by feisty from Fotolia.com
Whenever a renter enters into a lease agreement with a landlord, Florida law governs how these parties can interact. These laws govern every step of the landlord-tenant interaction, from the time the lease is entered into to the time it is over. How conflicts are handled, and what rights renters have in their tenancy, are laid out in the Florida laws. - Florida renter laws are generally covered under Florida's "Landlord and Tenant" statutes. A rental agreement, sometimes called a lease, can be either written or orally agreed to. Any notice a renter provides the landlord, or the landlord provides the renter, must be in writing. Unless the lease agreement specifically states the term of tenancy, the duration of the rental period is as long as the rent duration. So, if a renter enters into an oral agreement with a landlord to pay the rent on a monthly basis, they have a month-to-month lease. On the other hand, if they enter into an agreement (either in writing or orally) to rent a property for a year and pay rent on a monthly basis, the lease is a yearly lease.
- Landlord have the right to collect rent in advance as well as security or damage deposits. These funds can be used by the landlord to repair damages sustained to the property during the renter's tenancy. A renter has the right to inspect the property beforehand and make notes, or take photos, as to the condition of the property and any damage that exists at the time of inspection. Upon termination of the lease, the landlord has 15 days after the last day of tenancy to return the deposit, or 30 days to mail the renter a claim explaining why he is keeping all or part of the deposit. If this claim is not mailed within 30 days, the landlord cannot claim any money from the deposit.
- Landlords have the duty to provide habitable dwellings to the renter, while the renter has the duty to notify the landlord if any problems in the property arise. These duties apply to any area that affects habitability, including the use of utilities, safety issues, sanitation issues, matters of pests or rodents, and garbage removal.
- If a renter fails to pay the rent, or in any other way violates the terms of the lease, a landlord can have the renter evicted. Where destruction of property or unreasonable disturbances are caused by the renter, the landlord can terminate the lease and provide the renter a seven-day notice to vacate. If the renter fails to pay the rent on time, the landlord must provide written notice that unless the rent is payed in three days, the renter must vacate. If after the three days has passed the renter has not paid, the landlord can go to court and file an eviction action. After that, the renter has five days to respond. If the renter doesn't respond, or if the renter does and the court finds in the landlord's favor, the court will order the eviction and the county sheriff will remove the renter from the property within 24 hours.
