Renting an apartment or home may seem simple enough during the life of the lease but both Landlords and Tenants often fail to properly abide by the specific requirements of Florida law which govern the duties of the respective parties upon the expiration of the lease. Most notably, the procedure to be followed regarding the return of a security deposit are not properly understood and frequently cause landlords and/or tenants to lose the right to the security deposit. Florida Statute 83.49(3)(a) sets forth the notification requirements that a Landlord must follow when a Tenant vacates the premises or the term of the lease expires.

Upon the expiration of a lease, Florida law requires a Landlord to return a security deposit within 15 days if he does not intend to make a claim for damages against the deposit. If the Landlord does intend to make such a claim he is given 30 days to notify the Tenant of the reason for the claim and the amount being claimed. The notice must be in the form required by the statute so do not just make up your own language if you are the landlord. Most importantly, a Landlord must send this notice by certified mail to the Tenant’s last known mailing address. Therefore, it is important for a Tenant to remember to provide a forwarding address. If the Landlord fails to either return the deposit within 15 days or make notice by certified mail within 30 days using the language required by the statute, the Landlord has forfeited any and all claims he may have had against the deposit.

If a Tenant receives a notice of intent to make a claim against the security deposit he must object to the claim within 15 days after receipt of the notice. If the Tenant fails to make a timely objection the Landlord may deduct the amount of his claim and then remit the balance of the deposit to the Tenant within 30 days of the date on the notice of intent.

Also important to remember is that the above time requirements start running upon the expiration of the lease. If a Tenant vacates the premises prior to the expiration of the term specified in the lease he must give at least 7 days written notice by certified mail or personal delivery prior to vacating and include a forwarding address. If the Tenant fails to give this notification, the Landlord will no longer be held to the statutory time requirements for return of the security deposit.

If you have any questions regarding this article or your rights and/or duties under a lease please contact the Law Offices of W. Trent Steele at 772-408-6969 for a free consultation.