Rental lease broken after no repairs (leasing agent, eviction, lawyer)

[dap123]

I want to know if I am entitled to a refund of my security deposit after the landlord didn't complete any repairs and I had to move from the leased unit? When I sent a letter asking for a refund the landlord stated he had additional expenses to re-lease the house.

[tinytrump]

the ans is in MYFLORIDA new tenant laws and I think you have a right- but check

[TampaKaren]

The answer depends on the terms of your lease/contract and the statutes.

[Sunshinecc]

Whenever dealing with a landlord-tenant issue, there are many things that can be concluded as being in the right or in the wrong but...it comes down to the technicalities/laws and whether or not you have time time and resources to pursue, assuming you followed all of the steps on your end. It sounds like your actions are after the fact so it may be too late but here are some links for your state in case it helps:

Floridas' Landlord/Tenant Law and Statutes & Constitution :View Statutes : Online Sunshine

Your lease agreement could also contain amendments (that may or may not be binding) so I would check that.

And lastly, depending on the type of issue(s) the landlord was not addressing, you could check with your local town hall. For example, if there was an issue with the plumbing, you could make sure that all work is up to code. There are alot of things landlords have to do (some you would not believe) to be up to code or else they are in violoation.

Again, it is very time consuming to investigate all points but if you're up for it, just make sure you have all your ducks in a row.

[bentlebee]

If the LL fails to take care of repairs than Florida law is very clear how to handle it and not paying rent or just moving is. to the solution.

A tenants to give proper notice as the law requires...which requires proof! If nothing has done within he time frame that is set for that then the tenant has to go to the court register and deposit/pay the rent into the court register and the LL can't file eviction for non payment but the Ll won't get a penny until proof is shown that the repairs have been taken care off.

The requested repairs must be reasonable repairs that a LL is required to do and not just because a tenants feels they are entitled to have performed and for issues which the tenants have caused.

Just today we had a tenant walking in for a place we rented out but don't manage and if you let the tenant talk for a little bit longer than you hear clearly that it is not about the repair but more about the tenant wanting to break the lease without being held liable and using repairs in their defense but in the end it was just a bogus story.

On the other hand we also dealt with slumlords that we no longer want to deal with since we want tenants to be treated well and keep our good name.

There are good and bad on both sides but the scale is uneven since we have seen way more bad tenants then bad owners.

Luckily we also deal with very good tenants and we always are happy when we can give back full security deposit since it makes our lives so much easier.

[dap123]

My lease states the property was leased "as-is". I don't think this excuses the LL from making necessary repairs. The toilet in the Master bath moved whenever seated. The clay on the tiled floor was crumbling because it wasn't sealed properly causing my dog to become ill and me an allergic reaction. The leasing agent told me the LL would be willing to make some repairs, so we drafted a list and sent first by email and the by snail mail. Three months later still no response, until I threatened to leave. By then I was packed and ready to go. So am I entitled to my security deposit?

[gulfer]

What did a Lawyer say? You really aren't going to get any firm answer posting this on here. Sorry about that. But I don't think there is a Lawyer that routinely reads these boards.

GOOD LUCK

[PeachInTheCity]

Originally Posted by dap123

My lease states the property was leased "as-is".

To be honest……there is your answer.

[SULAW2015]

I do.

[bentlebee]

Do you have proof of your dog becoming ill form the clay on the floor...you will need proof of that from a Vet and not because you believe that is the cause of your dog to get sick...in court they need official proof from an expert.

The toilet moving is not a cause to stop paying rent but to follow Fl. law to handle it the proper way if the owner doesn't respond to a timely repair fix.

The owner on the other hand can't withhold a security deposit without proof.