Residential Evictions in Florida: When the Rent is Due, Where is the Process?

Abstract

Florida's residential eviction statute requires that a tenant who is sued for eviction must deposit into the registry of the court any alleged past-due rent. This never happens because tenants are either ignorant of the requirement, are unable to deposit the money, or choose to simply move on. If the past-due rent is not deposited with the court, the tenant is not permitted to raise any defenses in court, meaning the landlord always wins. It is wasteful to require landlords and courts to address issues the results of which are virtually always in favor of one party. Further, the law ignores basic notions about the human need for housing. The law serves no purpose, and should be changed.

Keywords: landlord-tenant law, Florida, residential evictions

JEL Classification: K10, K11, K40