How To File An Eviction Notice In Florida (A Complete Step-By-Step Guide)

When evicting a tenant, landlords in Florida have to follow a specific process. It can be confusing if you're not familiar with the process, or if you've never had to evict a tenant before.  But don't worry, we're here to help! In this step-by-step guide, we'll walk you through the process so you can understand what's required of you. We'll also provide tips on making the eviction process as smooth and stress-free as possible. So don't wait any longer - let's get started!

Recover possession of your rental property.

So, you want your rental property back? If you're a landlord, there's always the chance that you'll have to deal with a tenant who refuses to vacate your property. Well, there are only four ways you can go about it and recover possession of your rental property.

1. The first way is if you ask your tenant to voluntarily move out of the unit and they comply.
2. The second way is if the tenant abandons the rental unit without any discussion.
3. The third way is if the tenant dies. In the case of the tenant's death, consult an attorney before you reclaim possession of the rental property.
4. Finally, the last way, and our current subject, is through a civil action for possession. Otherwise known as an eviction. This can be costly and time-consuming which is usually not an ideal situation for either party. However, it may be your only option.

Self-help evictions isn’t an option because they’re illegal. 

What is a self-help eviction?

Anything a landlord does that creates a hostile or unlivable environment for a tenant is a self-help eviction. Changing locks, physically removing them from the property without a sheriff, or turning off utilities will get you in legal hot water.

In any case, if you’ve never evicted a tenant before, it's advisable to consult with an experienced attorney to ensure that you take the appropriate legal action. That said, with a little patience and the right information you can do it yourself.

How much does it cost to evict someone in Florida?

The cost to evict a tenant in Florida depends a lot on the tenant. If you have a tenant that knows they’re in the wrong and has little self-respect they’ll leave of their own free will. You won’t have to go through with the entire eviction process. They may leave after you give them notice or they might leave after they’ve been served with court papers. The thing is they’ll leave with minimum fuss.

Then you have the professional tenants. They know the system and they’ll milk it for all it’s worth. They’ll stay until the very last moment when the sheriff knocks on their door to put them out. To make matters worse they may hire and obtain free legal aid to stall the process. This free lawyer will also try to find anything wrong with your filings. So if you haven’t already, you should strongly consider hiring an attorney at this point, which makes the cost to evict a tenant even more costly. 

You may also consider the damage a vindictive tenant can cause to your property. Not only will they not go willingly, but they’ll also leave little reminders for you to remember them by in some form of property damage. This kind of damage can easily add several thousand dollars in repairs to your costs of eviction. Vindictive professional tenants can be very imaginative in creating damage.

There are 2 Court related fee categories

• Eviction Court Filing Fees - The costs associated with filing your summons and complaint for eviction
• Eviction Court Service Fees - Payments to Sheriff or process server to serve the tenant.

Eviction Court Filing Fees

Eviction Court Service Fees

Average  Eviction Attorney Fees

Loss of Rental Income from Eviction

All of the above are real-world conservative estimates. It could be more. It could be less. But one thing is for sure these numbers are an eye-opening reason to thoroughly screen your tenants before renting.

What is the eviction process in Florida?

The eviction process in Florida is pretty straightforward. It begins with the landlord serving the tenant with appropriate notice. Depending on the reason for the eviction, this may be a Notice to Vacate or a Notice to Cure. 

The reasons for serving notice and ultimately filing an eviction with the courthouse must meet the requirements established in Florida Statutes F.S. 83.56 - Termination of the rental agreement. 

Fill out eviction forms

If the tenant hasn’t moved out by the deadline on the notice your next step requires the forms for evictions to be completed by the landlord with the clerk of courts, including the proper notice, or a copy of any other documentation (e.g: a copy of a lease) that supports the claim for eviction. Refer to F.S. 83.56 - Termination of the rental agreement for details. The clerk will issue an eviction summons and complaint, which the landlord must serve on the tenant. 

Judgment & Writ of Possession

The Judgment & Writ of Possession process are the final steps in the eviction process. If the tenant does not respond in writing to the summons within five days, they will receive a Judgment by Default. After the tenant receives a Judgment, the landlord can get a Writ of Possession from the court that allows the Sheriff to forcibly remove the tenant if necessary.

How to evict a tenant for non-payment of rent with a 3-day notice

The type of notice to evict a tenant for late rent is a 3-day notice. You have a tenant who failed to pay for 1 or more months. In this case, you’ll serve them with a Three (3) day notices for non-payment of rent: The landlord must provide a three (3) day notice of eviction, informing the tenant(s) that he or she must pay the rent due or move out of the premises. When calculating time, do not include the day of delivery, weekends, or holidays. Refer to F.S. 83.56 - Termination of a rental agreement for details. If you’re ever unsure of how to calculate the days you can always extend the due date a few extra days.

How to evict a tenant for lease violation with a 7-day notice

You’ll use a seven (7) day notice of non-compliance for issues other than rent: You have a tenant who violated your lease in a matter that is beyond working out. It could be anything from property damage to illegal activity. The point is they are in violation and you want them out. You’ll serve this tenant a Seven (7) day notice to vacate. The 7-day notice Refer to Florida Statutes F.S. 83.56 - Termination of a rental agreement for details.

How to evict a tenant without a lease in Florida with a 15-day notice

This type of notice is for a tenant who is on a month-to-month lease. A 15-day termination notice is given to a tenant who wishes to vacate your property for no specific reason. That’s the good thing about a month-to-month tenancy in Florida. You don’t need a reason to ask a month-to-month tenant to leave.

This is also called a tenancy at will. It could be that your tenant never had a lease or they stayed after their lease expired. Because you don’t need a reason, don’t give them one. I say this because if you have a tenant you’ve had a conflict with you may say the wrong thing. Why expose yourself to unnecessary legal issues? Instead, just tell them you have other plans and you need your property back.

How long does it take to file an eviction in Florida?

Eviction is a potentially lengthy process. That said your average eviction should average about 30 days. 

How do I file an eviction notice in Florida?

After your tenant has failed to comply with your notice, your next step is to file your eviction with the Clerk of Courts. You’ll have to file a complaint, as well as other forms to begin the eviction process. You can either fill out these forms yourself or hire an attorney to prepare and file them for you.  If you have a property manager file for you, you’ll have to sign a form giving your property manager authorization to sign on behalf of the owner (the “Plaintiff”).

If you hire an attorney, expect them to charge you anywhere from $300 and up to file a tenant eviction for you. If your tenant responds and draws out the process, attorney fees can climb even higher. Alternatively, you can successfully fill out and submit the forms yourself. Don’t expect to get any help with filling out your eviction forms from the Clerk. They’ll happily tell you that they aren’t allowed to give you legal advice. You can argue that questions on how to properly fill out a form aren’t legal advice but you’ll get the same response as before. 

When I first started filling out my own eviction paperwork it would take me forever to file an eviction. 

• A couple of hours printing and reprinting documents after correcting mistakes
• driving to the courthouse
• The Clerk told me that she can’t process it without the address of the plaintiff and defendant at the top of the form
• Handwriting missing information
• Running to the post office to get a money order for the sheriffs fee to serve the complaint and summons
• Getting back late to the Clerk’s office just after they’ve closed

It’s your responsibility to have a copy of the Complaint and Summons served on the tenants (the “Defendants”). You can either use your own process server or the sheriff. For faster service, you should consider using a process server. The Summons is a document that explains the lawsuit's procedures. The Complaint is the document that explains what the eviction is about.

These documents can be served on the tenant(s) 

1. individually,
2. Through substitute service,
3. or by posting the Complaint and Summons on the property’s front door, if the tenant isn’t home. 

You can’t serve these documents yourself. You’ll have to use either a private process server or use the Sheriff's office.

After you’ve successfully submitted your eviction complaint with the court and your tenant has been served, they have 5 days to respond in writing to the court. If they don’t respond you can proceed to file your next group of eviction documents to recover possession of your property. 

If they haven’t responded with a written “Answer” within 5 days, a default can be entered by the Clerk of Court and a final judgment for possession will be signed by the Judge after you the Plaintiff provides the court with 

1. A copy of the complaint and corresponding documents,
2. Copy of proof of service and
3. An affidavit showing the court that the defendant is not in the military.

A Non-Military Affidavit is an affidavit that shows that your tenant “the Defendant” is not an active member of the military.

Once the final judgment is received by the Plaintiff the Plaintiff can request that a Writ of Possession be issued and have the Writ posted on the property by the Sheriff. Unlike the complaint and summons, a Writ of Possession must be posted and executed by a sheriff not a process server. Once the writ is posted, the tenant must vacate the residence within 24 hours or risk losing all their belongings.

The Writ permits the property owner to remove the tenants and their belongings from the property with the assistance of a law enforcement officer. Filing the eviction isn’t the only time-consuming problem. It’s the time it takes after you’ve filed. Expect 3 to 4 weeks if everything goes as planned and the Clerk and Sheriff’s office aren’t overly busy. You should expect the Sheriff to complete your eviction within 10 working days (hopefully sooner) from the time the Writ of Possession is filed with the Sheriff’s office. The tenant is given 24 hours from the day and time the Sheriff actually gets around to posting the notice on your tenant's door.

Three to four weeks is a good turnaround. However, it could be as long as 3 months. Factors such as a high number of Civil cases the Clerk has to deal with can delay the turnaround time for your paperwork. The Sheriff’s department may place your eviction lower in priority. Crime doesn’t have a schedule. So the Sheriff may delay serving your tenants if they’re needed elsewhere on that day. 

What if my tenant files an answer to my eviction?

The biggest reason for a long drawn-out eviction process is if a tenant files an answer. If the tenant files an Answer with the Clerk of Court, a hearing or mediation will generally be scheduled within a week. If the eviction is based on non-payment of rent, in order to obtain a hearing date, the tenant must pay all rent money into the court’s registry when they file their response to the Complaint.

If the tenant says the money requested in the 3-day notice is incorrect, the tenant must explain why the amount is wrong and attach any proof to the Answer, including copies of receipts for any payments made. Additionally, The tenant must also deposit the amount he or she thinks they owe into the court registry together with any receipts of payments that disputes the amount requested to the court registry in order to receive a hearing.

The next hearing will be a rent determination hearing to determine what the remaining balance is that’s owed. The judge will determine the amount that is due from the tenant. The tenant will then have a matter of days to place that amount into the registry.

If you the landlord accept any rent from the tenant during the lawsuit, the Plaintiff also has a responsibility to deposit any money they accepted into the Court registry. It’s advisable not to directly accept any money from the tenant. Instruct them to deposit any rent they offer directly into the registry. The reason is by accepting any payments, you risk your eviction being thrown out. You’ll then have to start all over with a new eviction notice and filing process.

The Clerk of Court will hold all money in the Court registry until a final hearing is set and a final decision has been made by the judge. Prior to the final hearing and after rent has been deposited into the registry the Plaintiff and the Defendant will be required to attend mediation set by the Judge. The purpose of mediation is to help the parties come to a compromise. This could be re-negotiating their lease, working out a payment plan, or even reaching an agreement on when the tenant will vacate the property. 

Mediation is free of charge. Although it may be in your best interest to make an attempt, you aren’t obligated to reach an agreement. However, if you both do reach an agreement at mediation, the terms of the agreement will be put in writing and signed by the parties. The judge then signs the agreement, making it a binding contract. The plaintiff is then entitled to a final judgment without the need for a final hearing. 

If the tenant abides by the agreement reached in the mediation the case will be dismissed. If the landlord and the tenant are unable to come to an agreement in mediation and the tenant has deposited all the required money into the court's registry the judge will give the parties a final hearing or trial. All parties must attend the final hearing.

If the property owner is a business or corporation, the Plaintiff must be represented by an attorney. Property managers are not allowed to represent the Plaintiff in a hearing/trial. Both sides will present facts to the judge. Provide your attorney with copies of rent receipts, payment ledgers, the lease agreement, all notices, and all other documents you think are important to prove your case. 

Provide printed copies if you wish to include text messages or photographs. These documents will be collected from you and entered into evidence. You’ll have to subpoena any witnesses you would like to testify at your trial.

Where can I get Florida eviction forms?

Eviction forms can be found all over the net. You can find both paid and free forms in any google search. The problem isn’t finding forms. The problem is finding the right forms and when you do how you use them. The types of forms you’ll find on the web are…

• PDF forms you can download and print
• These are the old-school method of doing forms.
• Forms on pdf form sites
• These are usually generic one size fits all forms. These types of sites usually don’t specialize in eviction forms.
• Official forms on your local clerk of court website
• Go to any county civil courthouse location to pick up a copy of their Tenant Eviction Forms Package. If you get your forms this way it means you’ll be filling out forms by hand so try not to make any mistakes or you’ll have to start all over with fresh copies. You also can download copies from your Floridaclerk of court website.
• UstayUpay.com cloud-based eviction documents
• UstayUpay.com combines the official forms you’ll get from your local clerk's office with an easy-to-use web-based eviction notice management system.

Don’t look for help from your local courthouse clerks with questions on how to fill out your eviction forms. It’s the official policy for them not to help you. The clerk will not advise you on how to fill out your forms. So, you’re on your own. They’ll tell you to get legal aid if you don’t understand their paperwork. With the UstayUpay.com Rental Notice Management System, while we don’t give you legal advice, we do make it easy to understand and fill out confusing official clerk of court eviction forms.

What are the Florida landlord Tenant eviction laws?

You can find everything you need to know about Florida’s residential landlord-tenant laws (otherwise known as Chapter 83 of The Florida Statutes) on the official site of the Florida legislature. 

Some of the sections the Florida statutes for residential tenancies cover are below.

• 83.56 Termination of the rental agreement
• 83.57 Termination of tenancy without specific term.
• 83.575 Termination of tenancy with specific duration.
• 83.58 Remedies; tenant holding over.

While each year could potentially mean some changes to the statutes, for the most part, they stay the same through the years. You can view the most recent Florida landlord-tenant statutes for residential tenancies (as of this writing) right here.