Discover the laws and penalties related to breaking a lease in Florida, and how to navigate this complex process effectively.
Breaking a Lease in Florida: Know the Laws
A lease is legally binding for the entire term of the agreement as per Florida landlord-tenant law. But what does this mean for your tenant? It means that they must continue paying for the entire lease term, regardless of whether they live there or not.
But there are exceptions to this rule. If a tenant has a legally justified reason, they can leave without further responsibility regarding breaking a lease early.
In this guide, we at Keyrenter South Florida walk you through everything you need to learn about breaking a lease early.
When Can a Tenant Legally Break Their Lease in Florida?
The following are some scenarios in which a tenant can legally break a lease per Florida law without penalty:
The Tenant is Entering Active Military Duty
Is your tenant beginning active military service that requires them to relocate?
If so, they are protected against early lease termination penalties by the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA). The protection by the action begins from the day they enter active duty and ends anywhere between 30 and 90 days after being discharged.
This act requires that a renter do the following prior to breaking a lease due to military duty:
- Prove that they signed the Florida lease agreement prior to starting duty.
- Prove that they have an intention to remain on active duty for at least the next ninety days.
- In addition, the Act also requires that the renter serve their landlord with a copy of the deployment letters.
But even after meeting all these requirements, the lease doesn’t end immediately. It takes another 30 days after the next rent cycle begins for the lease to terminate. Suppose, for instance, a landlord’s renter serves them the notice on April 21. In such a case, the earliest the lease can end would be on June 1 (assuming rent is due on the 1st of every month).
The Unit is Not Habitable
Florida, just like other states, requires landlords to abide by certain minimum health and safety standards per the public health service. So, if the landlord is not able to meet those standards within a reasonable period of time after being notified by their renter, the tenant is considered “constructively evicted” from the rental unit due to health and safety violations.
At that point, the renter would not be required to continue honoring their obligations under the lease agreement they had with the landlord.
So, for a landlord to have a rental property deemed habitable, Fla. Stat. 83.51 requires that the landlord provide the following at the very least:
- Working sanitation facilities.
- Working electrical, plumbing, and HVAC equipment.
- Provide hot and cold running water.
- Operable doors and windows that are in a good state of repair.
As a landlord in Florida, you have 20 days to make any repairs after being notified by your tenants. If you don’t, your renter can simply choose to leave without legal repercussions related to the lease.
Alternatively, a renter may choose to stop paying rent to their landlord instead of choosing to break a lease, repair the issue and deduct the appropriate costs from future rent payments, or even report the landlord to public officials if the landlord violates a local housing code.
An Early Termination Clause in the Lease
Some leases contain specific terms and lease termination notice requirements that would allow tenants to break a lease or rental agreement early. In most cases, early termination clauses require tenants to meet two conditions first before moving out.
That is a small penalty fee, as well as an advance written notice, along with dealing with any security deposit deductions. If your tenants meet such conditions with proper notice and you have an early termination clause in your lease or rental agreement, they can opt to terminate their lease and receive their remaining security deposit after deductions.
Landlord Harassment
Certain actions taken by a landlord can be serious enough to be deemed as harassment. Some common examples are as follows:
- Entering your tenant’s unit repeatedly without notice. In Florida, landlords are required to provide their tenants with advance notice of at least 12 hours prior to entry. Turning off utilities that were previously available to the tenant.
- Locking the tenant out of the unit by changing the unit’s locks
- Removing windows and doors.
- Removing the tenant’s belongings from the unit.
- When a Tenant in Florida doesn’t have enough Justification to Break a Lease
- Breaching the Fair Housing Act
The following reasons generally don’t offer enough justification to release a tenant from their lease obligations:
- Relocating to the new house, they bought
- Relocating for a new school or job
- Moving to get closer to family and friends
- Upsizing or downsizing
- Moving in with a lover
- Moving out due to divorce or separation
Some states require their landlords to make reasonable efforts to re-rent their unit to a new tenant after a tenant breaks a lease. But this isn’t the case in the state of Florida.
So, technically speaking, a landlord can leave a unit empty for the rest of the lease term and then hold their tenant responsible for all the remaining rent under the lease.
Bottom Line
Hopefully, this will have answered your questions on when a tenant can and cannot terminate their lease with a landlord. But if you have any questions about Florida Landlord-Tenant Law, please don’t hesitate to contact us at Keyrenter South Florida.
We’re an experienced and professional property management company in South Florida, and helping property owners maximize their rental income is what we do best!
Disclaimer: This content isn’t a substitute for professional legal advice from a qualified attorney. Also, laws change, and the content herein may not be updated at the time you read it. For expert help, KeyRenter South Florida can help.