No landlord wants to deal with an eviction, but if you own rental property long enough, it is something you will encounter. Evictions are necessary for a variety of reasons, including non-payment of rent, criminal activity, or just because the landlord wants to use the property for another purpose and the tenant refuses to leave.
However, Florida law protects tenants from just being thrown out of their homes without any notice. Before you can terminate a tenancy or file an official eviction lawsuit in civil court, you must give the tenant proper notice of the termination of their tenancy. This gives the tenant an opportunity to correct the reason for termination, contest the termination, or find another place to live. The reason for the termination will determine exactly how the process plays out.
Termination of Tenancy With Fault
Termination of tenancy with fault means that the tenant did (or did not do) something to prompt the termination. Failure to pay rent, engaging in criminal activity, or allowing unauthorized persons to live in the rental property are all with fault reasons to terminate a tenancy. Different termination with fault reasons require different notices to be delivered to the tenant:
- Failure to pay rent: 3-day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit
- Correctable violation of the rental or lease agreement: 7-day Notice to Cure
- Uncorrectable violation of the rental or lease agreement, criminal activity, or destruction of the property or other tenant’s possessions: 7-day Unconditional Quit Notice
Note that these timelines do not include weekends or holidays.
Termination of Tenancy Without Fault
The notice required to terminate a tenancy without fault depends on the term of the rental or lease agreement. For month-to-month renters, you must provide written notice of the termination of tenancy at least 15 days prior to the end of the current rental month. For rental or lease agreements with a predetermined end date, you must wait until the end of the term to terminate the tenancy, but no written notice is required (it is polite to notify the tenant of your desire not to renew their lease, even though the law doesn’t require it).
Do I Need a Process Server to Serve the Termination Notice?
Technically, you do not have to use a process server to deliver any of the required terminations of tenancy notices to your tenants. However, many eviction cases are contested by tenants due to claims that they never received a termination of tenancy notice, and therefore, did not know that they were supposed to leave. This is why we always recommend using a professional, private, certified process server to serve any type of legal notice, including termination of tenancy notices. By using a reputable private process server, like those here at Accurate Serve® of Ft. Myers, you will receive verifiable proof of service that you can use as evidence in your eviction claim. This will save you time, hassle, and potentially money down the road.
Eviction
Once you have properly notified the tenant of the termination of their tenancy, the countdown begins. You must allow the tenant to stay on the property if:
- They pay the rent they owe within 3 days (you do not have to accept partial rent payments, but if you do, you are potentially forfeiting the failure to pay rent 3-day notice and may have to begin again)
- They correct their lease agreement violations within 7 days
However, if the reason for the termination was an uncorrectable violation or without fault, the tenant has no choice but to vacate the property by the end of the notice. If they do not, you can file an official eviction lawsuit. Just like any other civil suit, after filing the proper eviction forms with the local clerk of court, you must serve the named defendant(s) with a copy of the eviction complaint and a summons showing when they should appear in court.
Do I Need a Process Server to Serve Eviction Papers?
Yes, in the state of Florida, you must use either a certified process server or law enforcement to serve eviction papers. Once served, proof of service should be filed with the court as part of the evidence for the eviction case. Not using a certified, approved process server may result in the dismissal of your eviction case.
Certified Process Servers in Lee County
If you need to deliver a termination of tenancy notice or have eviction papers served in Lee County, look no further than the certified private process servers at Accurate Serve®. Call us at (239) 822-7299 or send us your request online to get started today.
