Approximately 35% of Americans don’t own homes: about 114 million Americans out of 333 million live in 44 million rented residences. This means that a significant part of the country's residents are real estate tenants who are constantly forced to delve into all the subtleties of the rental process.
Florida, the third most populous state in America, also has quite a number of tenants. This number grew from 2.1 million people in 2007, was fixed at 2.6-2.7 million in 2015 and has hardly changed since then.
At the same time, the homeowner community has been continually growing since 2013, adding approx. 100,000 owners annually. This trend could contribute to the democratization of the market, if not for the prices of real estate in Florida – they have increased by 80% in the last 5 years alone and do not plan to stop. In addition, the number of people willing to rent out real estate in the United States is constantly decreasing. In addition to US citizens, many foreigners also rent housing. It is often easier for them to rent an apartment in Florida with an average monthly rental cost of about $2,500 than to look for the capital to buy a villa or a new building in Florida.
What do those planning to be a tenant in the Sunny State need to know?
Content:
- Basic Law
- The relationship between the owner of the dwelling and the tenant
- Where to start
- Tenant's Bill of Rights
Basic Law
The general issues of renting residential space in Florida are regulated by Chapter 83 of the second part of the laws of the State of Florida as amended in 2019. It describes in detail the nature of the relationship between the landlord and the tenant. We should note immediately that owners of mobile homes (trailers, etc.) renting a place in a special campsite should be guided by Chapter 723- a completely different section of the law. However, this is not worth taking into consideration as no more than 5% of Americans, and even fewer foreigners, live in mobile homes.
Lease Agreement
Rental of your real estate should be formalised with a contract having the following characteristic features:
- It can be written or oral. Whenever possible, a written contract is recommended. An oral agreement, even when concluded in the presence of witnesses, can always be misinterpreted, and you can lose your housing and money. By the way, notification of an increase in rent can only be made in writing and a lease agreement for a period of more than a year must be on paper.
- The contract is concluded for a certain period or indefinitely. In perpetuity, you can pay a monthly or weekly rent and this fee can be reviewed by the owner at any time. Termination of the monthly contract is made upon notification of one of the parties at least 15 days before the next deadline of the rental payment, and the lease can be terminated by this exact date. In the case of a monthly payment, the notification must be received by the second party at least 7 days in advance.
- Please note: always try to deliver and receive all notifications in person as it is easy to miss the necessary deadlines by mailing. The increase in payment occurs according to the same scheme. In Florida, the owner of a private home can terminate an indefinite lease agreement at any time. They do not need any additional grounds. Therefore, this form entails certain risks for the tenant.
- When concluding a contract for a specific period, you are insured against sudden eviction or rent increases, but you are tied to a specific address. In Florida, the landlord is not obliged to return the money in the case of early termination of the contract – e.g., if you need to move due to your work, or the family composition has changed and you want to rent something else. To protect yourself from possible losses, you can provide a special clause in the contract, but not state that the owner will do it. Or you can try to offer the rented housing to another person, but more on that below.
- A feature of the State of Florida – the lease is considered terminated upon the completion of the lease agreement. In order to continue renting the house, the tenant must explicitly express such a desire, preferably in writing. If the owner does not want to continue the relationship, and the tenant refuses to move out, then it is perfectly legal for his rent to be increased by double. At the same time, all the rules regarding the timing of the notifications of both the termination and renewal of the lease apply to both parties.
- The contract should contain standard rules for eviction in the case of rental delay. This should include a three-day notice of the defaulter's eviction, usually attached to the door. This does not, however, include weekends and holidays, and another 5 days are added when delivered by mail. Of course, if a payment is made during this period, no one then has the right to evict the tenant. He can then file a counterclaim within 5 days, but, of course, it’s not worth bringing to trial.
- It prescribes essential living conditions – e.g., the possibility of living with pets or the availability of a parking space. In this case, the owner can, but not always, evict the tenant for non-compliance with such conditions. E.g., if you parked your car in someone else's parking space but stopped after being notified, then this is an «avoidable violation» and you cannot be evicted for it. However, you must correct the violation within a week after the notification and not repeat it again. However, for hooliganism against neighbours or the destruction of the landlord's property, you can definitely be evicted.
- Also, most of the time there is a clause in the contract about paying the security deposit – usually the amount of the monthly lease. Although the deposit is intended mainly for any unforeseen repairs or the repayment of unpaid bills, this deposit can often be withheld in the case of the premature departure of the tenant. To limit the costs to this deposit only, and in order not to pay for the entire remaining lease term, include such an agreement in the text of the contract or sign it with the owner separately.
- The possibility of retaking rented housing (sublet) can also be fixed in the contract. You can then retake the apartment if you don't use it or rent it from the same tenant who moved out. Remember that an oral retake does not impose any obligations on the owner, and he can evict a stranger at any time.
General rules for signing contracts
Common to all lease agreements: always try to clarify all the points before signing. Never sign a document where some sections are left blank – e.g. if the amount of the fine for late rent is not entered. Please note that the laws of Florida do not regulate the size of such fines in any way, nor do they prescribe grace periods for payment. All these points must be clearly stated in the contract.
The relationship between the owner of the dwelling and the tenant
The law establishes certain limits of behaviour and the level of service for the owner and the tenant.
Rights and obligations of the owner
- The owner can only visit the rented property by giving the tenant reasonable (at least 12 hours, but usually a day or two in advance), during the daytime (from 7.30 am to 8 pm), and of course for good reasons – mainly for necessary repairs or the provision of other agreed services.
- The owner is obliged to keep the housing in order and correct any shortcomings in time. If the householder refuses to solve any problems with the apartment or house, you will have a difficult procedure, even with a written notification and other troubles, summoning him to court.
- Important: it is better to pay the rent during the entire trial, or, at the least postpone it separately. During the trial, you will be required to deposit the entire amount of unpaid rent as collateral until the court decision, and this still does not guarantee a decision in your favour. Therefore, it’s better to initially choose a property where significant problems are not expected.
- The landlord does not have the right to evict the tenant on his own, refuse to provide him with necessary services (electricity, gas, water, etc.) or remove his property, as well as change the locks without permission. All this is possible only by a court decision. An interesting detail is that this also applies to hotels and motels, so your eviction from them (unless of course this is your only accommodation) should follow the same procedure as eviction from a rented villa in Florida.
Rights and obligations of the tenant
In addition to the timely payment of rent, the tenant must:
- keep your part of the room clean and tidy.
- do not conflict with the neighbours.
- do not spoil the property.
- comply with the rules for the use of residential property.
In practice, the last point can lead to sealing holes in the walls when leaving (if you decided to hang your favourite picture), and to ordering a cleaning service as self-dusting is likely to be insufficient. However, cleaning is sometimes included in the contract – in this case, it’s worth checking the cost. In any case, sign an agreement with the owner about the absence of mutual claims when leaving the apartment and this will save you from any difficulties.
The law also covers, in sufficient detail, the option for when the tenant, for some reason, does not pay rent. And although eviction occurs only by a court decision, it’s not very quick. So, it is highly recommended not to allow it to get to such a state as it will be difficult to hide the fact of non-payment and will make it hard to rent the next property, especially in such a sought-after state as Florida.
Where to start
When concluding a rental agreement in the United States, the owner or realtor will require you to follow certain steps:
- Proof of solvency. A certificate from the bank about an open account with a sufficient amount (e.g., rent for a year or more), a letter from the employer, credit history and other documents confirming a good financial situation or a steady income will be suitable. If there are no such documents, it can usually help to pay a couple of months’ rent upfront.
- For those who have been living in America for some time, it’s necessary to show the last address. For this purpose, utility bills to your last address are usually used, which should be saved. However, you also need to keep any correspondence with realtors and homeowners – without any documents, it will be very difficult for you to prove something if such a need arises.
- Show the history, if there is one, of previous rental relationships.
Verification of the provided data may be paid for by the tenant.
First of all, at the viewing, be sure to describe the condition of the apartment. With the landlord, fill out and sign a list of all broken or missing mandatory items (e.g., a water heater) and carefully photograph anything that inspires any doubt, even a dirty window. By law, the landlord is obliged to provide housing in a satisfactory form, and if this is not the case but you still want to rent it, all inconsistencies must be reflected in the contract. By the way, the destruction of rodents and termites, garbage collection and cleanliness of common areas are also the responsibility of the owner.
Tenant's Bill of Rights
Since May 2022, in Miami-Dade County (the largest county in Florida, the capital is Miami), the landlord is obliged to issue the tenant a Tenant's Bill of Rights, including the following:
- The right of the tenant to independently make any necessary repairs in the premises and deduct the amount from the rent. Of course, this requires notification from the tenant and the subsequent inaction of the homeowner, an assessment of the repairs from licensed specialists and saved receipts of the work and materials.
- Various obligations on the transfer of information to the tenant, including the recognition of the building as unsafe and the change of the owner of the premises.
- The minimum notice period for rent increases of more than 5% has been increased to 60 days.
There are also many other changes in the Bill, mainly aimed at improving conditions for renting housing. Such changes are clearly overdue as it was in this district that the highest level of competition for rented housing was recorded in 2022 (with 14 applicants for one rented house in the United States in general; in Miami this number grew to 31 people).
In general, the Bill is a remarkable step towards increasing the level of legal protection of tenants in the state.