| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to residential tenancies; amending s. |
| 3 | 83.43, F.S.; revising and providing definitions; amending |
| 4 | s. 83.595, F.S.; allowing a landlord to terminate a rental |
| 5 | agreement and recover liquidated damages for breach of the |
| 6 | agreement or charge the tenant an early termination fee, |
| 7 | or both, under certain circumstances; providing a limit on |
| 8 | the combined total damages and fee; requiring the tenant |
| 9 | to indicate acceptance of an early termination fee or |
| 10 | liquidated damaged provision in the rental agreement; |
| 11 | specifying liability of the tenant for rent, other charges |
| 12 | otherwise due, and rental concessions under certain |
| 13 | circumstances; providing applicability and certain |
| 14 | retroactive effect; providing that the act does not |
| 15 | invalidate any liquidated damages or early termination fee |
| 16 | in any rental agreement entered into prior to the |
| 17 | effective date of the act; providing an effective date. |
| 18 |
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| 19 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 20 |
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| 21 | Section 1. Subsection (7) of section 83.43, Florida |
| 22 | Statutes, is amended, and subsection (17) is added to that |
| 23 | section, to read: |
| 24 | 83.43 Definitions.--As used in this part, the following |
| 25 | words and terms shall have the following meanings unless some |
| 26 | other meaning is plainly indicated: |
| 27 | (7) "Rental agreement" means any written agreement, |
| 28 | including amendments or addenda, or oral agreement if for less |
| 29 | duration than 1 year, providing for use and occupancy of |
| 30 | premises. |
| 31 | (17) "Early termination fee" means any charge, fee, or |
| 32 | forfeiture, contained in a written rental agreement, which is |
| 33 | assessed to a tenant when a tenant vacates a dwelling unit |
| 34 | before the end of the rental agreement. An early termination fee |
| 35 | does not include: |
| 36 | (a) Charges for services actually rendered to the tenant. |
| 37 | (b) Unpaid rent through the end of the month in which the |
| 38 | tenant occupied the dwelling unit. |
| 39 | (c) Charges for damages to the dwelling unit. |
| 40 | Section 2. Section 83.595, Florida Statutes, is amended to |
| 41 | read: |
| 42 | 83.595 Choice of remedies upon breach or early termination |
| 43 | by tenant.-- |
| 44 | (1) If the tenant breaches the rental agreement lease for |
| 45 | the dwelling unit and the landlord has obtained a writ of |
| 46 | possession, or the tenant has surrendered possession of the |
| 47 | dwelling unit to the landlord, or the tenant has abandoned the |
| 48 | dwelling unit, the landlord may: |
| 49 | (a) Treat the rental agreement lease as terminated and |
| 50 | retake possession for his or her own account, thereby |
| 51 | terminating any further liability of the tenant; or |
| 52 | (b) Retake possession of the dwelling unit for the account |
| 53 | of the tenant, holding the tenant liable for the difference |
| 54 | between the rent rental stipulated to be paid under the rental |
| 55 | lease agreement and what, in good faith, the landlord is able to |
| 56 | recover from a reletting; or |
| 57 | (c) Stand by and do nothing, holding the lessee liable for |
| 58 | the rent as it comes due; or. |
| 59 | (d)1. If provided for in the rental agreement, recover |
| 60 | liquidated damages upon the breach or charge the tenant a fee |
| 61 | for early termination of the rental agreement upon the tenant's |
| 62 | giving the landlord notice as provided for in the rental |
| 63 | agreement. The landlord shall be entitled to both liquidated |
| 64 | damages and an early termination fee, provided the combined |
| 65 | total charged for liquidated damages and the early termination |
| 66 | fee does not exceed an amount equal to 2 months' rent. The |
| 67 | landlord shall treat such a rental agreement as terminated and |
| 68 | charge the tenant liquidated damages or the early termination |
| 69 | fee as specified in the rental agreement. In such event, the |
| 70 | remedies set forth in paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) are not |
| 71 | available to the landlord. This subparagraph shall not apply |
| 72 | when the breach is failure to give notice at the end of the |
| 73 | rental agreement as provided in s. 83.575. |
| 74 | 2. The tenant shall indicate acceptance of an early |
| 75 | termination fee or liquidated damages provision in the rental |
| 76 | agreement. Acceptance for purposes of this subparagraph shall |
| 77 | include, but not be limited to, the tenant's placing his or her |
| 78 | initials next to the provision or otherwise indicating his or |
| 79 | her agreement with the provision. If acceptance is not |
| 80 | indicated, the remedies in paragraph (a), paragraph (b), or |
| 81 | paragraph (c) apply. |
| 82 | (2) The landlord may charge the tenant for any unpaid |
| 83 | rent, other charges due under the rental agreement through the |
| 84 | end of the month in which the landlord retakes possession of the |
| 85 | dwelling unit, and any rental concessions that the tenant has |
| 86 | received. For purposes of this subsection, the term "rental |
| 87 | concessions" means any amount contained in the rental agreement |
| 88 | by which all or a portion of the base rent or options is reduced |
| 89 | or any service or thing of value is given in consideration for |
| 90 | the tenant's entering into the rental agreement. |
| 91 | (3)(2) If the landlord retakes possession of the dwelling |
| 92 | unit for the account of the tenant pursuant to paragraph (1)(b), |
| 93 | the landlord has a duty to exercise good faith in attempting to |
| 94 | relet the premises, and any rent rentals received by the |
| 95 | landlord as a result of the reletting shall be deducted from the |
| 96 | balance of rent due from the tenant. For purposes of this |
| 97 | section, "good faith in attempting to relet the premises" means |
| 98 | that the landlord shall use at least the same efforts to relet |
| 99 | the premises as were used in the initial rental or at least the |
| 100 | same efforts as the landlord uses in attempting to rent lease |
| 101 | other similar rental units but does not require the landlord to |
| 102 | give a preference in leasing the premises over other vacant |
| 103 | dwelling units that the landlord owns or has the responsibility |
| 104 | to rent. |
| 105 | Section 3. This act applies to any rental agreement |
| 106 | entered into prior to the effective date of this act in which |
| 107 | the parties agree to the remedies authorized in this act, except |
| 108 | that s. 83.595(1)(d)2., Florida Statutes, applies to any rental |
| 109 | agreement entered into on or after the effective date of this |
| 110 | act. However, this act does not invalidate any liquidated |
| 111 | damages or early termination fee in any rental agreement entered |
| 112 | into prior to the effective date of this act. |
| 113 | Section 4. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. |