Q: How long does a landlord have to make a claim on a security deposit?
A: Section 83.49, Florida Statutes, requires the landlord to give written notice of intent to claim a security deposit within 30 days of the date the tenant vacates the premises. The notice must be sent by certified mail and must be sent to the tenant’s last known address. There is specific language (supplied in Section 83.49, Florida Statutes) that must be included in the notice. A landlord who isn’t going to make a claim on a security deposit is required to return the deposit within 15 days of the date the tenant vacates the premises.
Q: I’m a property manager, and I have one tenant who is chronically late paying rent. The tenant eventually pays, but not until a day or two after receiving my three-day notice to pay or quit the premises. The landlord and I are tired of playing this game. When we renew the lease, can the landlord add a section that says that the landlord can immediately evict once rent is one day late?
A: Probably not. Section 83.47, Florida Statutes, provides that a lease provision is void and unenforceable if it purports to preclude the requirements of the Florida Residential Landlord and Tenant Act. Since the contemplated provision seeks to destroy the statutorily mandated three-day notice for nonpayment of rent, a court would likely find the added provision unenforceable.
Q: Two days ago, a landlord and tenant signed a lease for a residential property. The tenant changed his mind and no longer wants to rent this property. Is there a rescission period after the execution of a lease, giving the tenant the right to change his or her mind and cancel the lease?
A: No. There is no Florida law that provides a tenant with an automatic rescission period for executed leases. However, the tenant may have a rescission period if the lease agreement specifically provides for one.
Q: I’m the broker and handle the property management for a residential landlord. The tenants’ security deposit and advance rent are held in my brokerage company’s escrow account. If the owner sells the property, may I as the property manager transfer the tenant’s security deposit and advance rent to the new owner?
A: Yes. Under Section 83.49(7), Florida Statutes, upon the sale of rental property, any and all security deposits or advance rents being held for the benefit of the tenants shall be transferred to the new owner, together with any earned interest and an accurate accounting showing the amounts to be credited to each tenant’s account.
Q: I primarily represent residential landlords, but recently a few commercial landlords have contacted me. Since the Florida Supreme Court provided lease forms for only residential property, may I have my local attorney draft a commercial lease form that I can fill out for my landlords?
A: For each commercial lease, the landlord and/or tenant will need a lawyer to draft a lease specific to the transaction. The landlord and tenant are also welcome to draft the lease themselves, although commercial leases are typically complicated enough to merit the services of a legal professional.
The Florida Supreme Court has provided only two lease forms that Realtors may use, and both are residential. If Realtors step beyond the role of scrivener (i.e., just filling in facts as dictated by the parties) on the residential lease forms, they’re likely engaging in the unauthorized practice of law.
Q: I represent a landlord as property manager and have a tenant who will frequently be out of the country over the course of his yearlong lease. The tenant has asked me to accept 10 predrafted checks and to direct deposit one at the beginning of each of 10 months of his absence to the landlord’s bank account. May I do this?
A: No. Rule 61J2-14.009, Florida Administrative Code, provides that an associate must deliver an escrow deposit “to the broker or employer no later than the end of the next business day following receipt of the item to be deposited. Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays shall not be construed as business days.”
The broker must then comply with Rule 61J2-14.010(1), Florida Administrative Code, by immediately depositing the funds in an escrow account. Rule 61J2-14.008(3), Florida Administrative Code, defines immediately as “the placement of a deposit in an escrow account no later than the end of the third business day following receipt of the item to be deposited. Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays shall not be construed as business days.”
The agent/broker’s holding of the checks for eventual monthly deposit would be a clear violation of Florida law.