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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
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    Default Security Deposit on Broken Lease 30 Day Notice

    My question involves a security deposit in the State of: Florida
    My wife and I were both laid off by the same company. We were no longer able to afford our rent. We gave a written certified 30 day notice to vacate the property we live in. We lived there 4 months of a 12 month lease. The landlord said we are not getting our secuirty deposit back because the lease was broken. Are we allowed to sue for the deposit or are we out of luck here in the state of Florida.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
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    1,995

    Default Re: Security Deposit on Broken Lease 30 Day Notice

    Quote Quoting greglaurie
    View Post
    My question involves a security deposit in the State of: Florida
    My wife and I were both laid off by the same company. We were no longer able to afford our rent. We gave a written certified 30 day notice to vacate the property we live in. We lived there 4 months of a 12 month lease. The landlord said we are not getting our secuirty deposit back because the lease was broken. Are we allowed to sue for the deposit or are we out of luck here in the state of Florida.
    Unless it is otherwise stated in the lease, you are obligated for the entire 12 months of the lease.

    BUT, the landlord is obligated to "mitigate" damages, that means, he can start looking for a new tenant to replace you. Once he finds himself this new tenant, you are relieved of your rent obligations.

    It may take him a while to find a new tenant in this market. The fact that you can't pay the rent doesn't mean he'll suddenly locate a tenant out of thin air, or haul a homeless person off the street just to fill the vacancy.

    You can try to sue him, but what I usually see in these cases is that it'll take more than a month for the next tenant to move in, so if the deposit is only one month, the landlord countersues, and the tenant winds up with a judgment for another month or two beyond the deposit. This does not even take into consideration if the LL finds any damages in the place.

    Unless it says in the lease that it can be terminated if you are laid off, you are on the hook for the rent. Otherwise, don't sign a lease, and only go month to month.

    Normally, in these cases, if the tenant agrees to let go the deposit, and the LL agrees not to sue for additional rent and damages, is the best you can hope for under the circumatances.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Posts
    252

    Default Re: Security Deposit on Broken Lease 30 Day Notice

    Florida is THE worse state to break a lease in.

    Their laws are structured to hold the tenant liable for the entire lease. This means that the landlord does NOT have to mitigate his damages by finding a replacement tenant. He can just sit back and collect rent from you for the duration of the lease..if you fail to pay, he can sue you for the full lease term.

    You most likely forfeited your deposit when you broke your lease. Read your lease.


    http://www.flsenate.gov/Statutes/ind...20595#0083.595

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Location
    Cinnaminson, New Jersey, United States
    Posts
    205

    Default Re: Security Deposit on Broken Lease 30 Day Notice

    Florida Landlords Can Charge Renters Who Break Lease Two Month Penalty

    The Florida rental laws get a major change.

    Landlords are happy; tenants aren’t.

    The Florida Legislature updated the state’s 34-year-old rental laws on an almost unanimous vote, allowing landlords the ability to levy thousands of dollars in penalties against renters who break their leasing agreements.

    How was the rental law before this?

    A landlord or real estate investor renting a property to tenant could only charge a renter who breaks the lease for the time required to get a new tenant for the home. Overlapping payments weren’t allowed, a practice known as “double rent”.

    How have the rental laws changed?

    Tenants are now culpable who not only leave before their lease term is over but also those who do not give a 60-day written notice that they will not be renewing their lease. These new changes will now allow landlords in Florida to collect thousands of dollars in penalties from their previous tenant even if they have a tenant lined up and ready to move into the property immediately.

    How much would a renter who breaks their lease have to pay?

    The penalty is equal to two month’s rent. The renter may also face additional expenses equal to another month to pay back any concessions offered. These concessions may include a free month originally given by a landlord as an incentive to sign a lease.

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