How do I break a lease in Florida?

Why?

Actually its easy to break a lease... violate any of the terms in it. Now of course you will be made to pay for that action... up to the full term of the lease if the property can't be rented out.


You didn't think you could break a legal contract without repercussions did you?

You've picked the worst state in the country to try and break a lease. Florida law does not require the landlord to try and find a new tenant if you break your lease. You would remain responsible for full payment of the rent for the entire term whether you live there or not.

Your best (only) option for getting out of this with as little financial damage as possible is to speak with the landlord and try to work something out. They may allow you out of the lease in return for a payment, such as a month or two of rent or forfeiting your security deposit. Or they may allow you to find a new tenant to take over the lease.

If the landlord is doing something, or failing to do something that makes it impossible for you to continue living there that's a different situation. If that's the case let us know the details and we can give you a better answer.

My landlord has said my brother may not stay for the weekend when I am not here. He also stated that my nephew is not allowed to stay over at all. And he says I must ask permission before I have any visitors. None of this is on my lease. Can he do that? I live in Florida.

In Florida, leasing a house and have been told by landlord I cannot have overnight guests without permission and he declines to allow me. Niothing is in the lease that stipulates guests being here or any process to handle guests.

No he may not say any of that. If he has a problem with a certain guest of yours, he should call the police and/or get a restraining order. But he may require that all 'occupants' be on the lease, and if you have people living there who you are pretending are not, you could have a showdown in court. Keep in mind too that he can simply not renew your lease when it's up, or raise the rent a lot, or evict you if he finds cause for eviction. You really don't want an adversarial relationship with any landlord.

The situation is I leased a beautiful cottage and very much love it. Then I got engaged and am moving to Houston. I was fine keeping the cottage through the end of the lease next March, as my mom is here in a nursing home and I will be visiting often. HOWEVER I recently had a friend as a guest for 10 days, and was emailed a notice from the landlord who lives in NY that first said I had someone living there and that violated the terms of my lease - and this was after my guest left. THEN he said the guest was unauthorized and that I was required to inform him of any extended visits. There is no mention of guests in my lease, or of any required process to inform him of any. It does say the hiuse id for my use, and the use of my immediate family and cannot be sublet.

I said fine. My mom broke many bones recently and has been permanently placed in a 24 hour care nursing home. Her Yorkie dog has been staying between my house and my three sisters homes. She was with me for several days when the landlord again emailed and said I cannot have a pet, which the lease does say. I apologized and explained the situation and put the dog with my sister.

Then I let him know that while I am in Houzston and maintaining the lease, my nephew would be checking on my personal things and would be there from time to time also visiting my mom. I let him know that my brother from NC would be visiting my mom one weekend a month and would be staying at the cottage. I did this because he said I need to inform him of any guests. He emailed back and said that my nephew would not be allowed to check on my things without first setting up an appointment with the property manager,that he did not see that it is necessary to check on my things and that he would not be allowed to stay overnight in any case. Then he said my brother cannot stay any time I am not physically present. The point of my brother visiting my mom is to do so on the weekends I am not there. Again, my lease says nothing specific about guests or asking permission. It is a standard lease indicating that the use of the house is for single family, my immediate family to live in, and is not to be sublet or relet. I can post the exact terms if you want.

I was also told that I had too many cars in the drive. This styems from one Friday afternoon when my houseguest ( remember her?) had her parents come in from Montreal for a late lunch, and I came home and had a work colleague with me to finish a project. A few hiurs on a Friday afternoon that did not block any part of the drive. Nobody else lives in this part of the property but the maintenance crew are in and out - They took a photo of the cars and emailed it to the landlord.

All to say that now I am uncomfortable in the hiuse, feel as if I am being watched and reported, and cannot have even family visiting. I would like out, even if I give 6 months notice.
My other question is CAN A LANDLORD TELL YOU WHAT DO DO ABOUT VISITORS? There is nothing in the lease, and IMMEDIATE FAMILY for sure includes at least siblings.

Thanks for your input!

I have nobody I am pretending is not living here.
Most of the time I am alone. My fiancée has come here twice (lives out of town - mostly I go there to visit him.
I am moving to Houston but keeping the house through the end of the lease in March, as my mom has recently been placed in a nursing home and I will be visiting about twice amonth. My brother will be coming on the weekends I am not here, and staying in the cottage. I informed the landlord and he said my brother cannot be here if I am not physically present. I told the landlord my nephew would be here from time to time to check on my things and visit my mom, and the landlord said it wasn't necessary, that if my nephew came he would be required to meet wqith the property manager, and that he cannot stay overnight under any circumstances. Again, nothing of this is in the lease.

What do you think is the best way to handle the situation?
Should I email him the terms of the lease that are not specific about guests ans state my intention? Should I hire an attorney to do the communication? Should I do what I want according to the provisions of the lease and let the chips fall?

It sounds like your landlord is making up some very subjective rules as he goes along. Is there anywhere in your lease that allows him to make reasonable rules and regulations? (This is a fairly standard clause.) If so then he does have the right to make up rules as he goes along and the determination of whether those rules are reasonable would be left up to a court.

If I were in your position I would send a letter to the landlord by certified mail informing him that your previous communication was provided as information to him and not a request for his permission, and that your brother is part of your immediate family and there are no provisions in the lease prohibiting him from visiting and staying overnight when you are not present.

I would further state that his attempts to curtail the visitors, and the notice of having too many cars in the drive when you had company for a few hours one afternoon are actions that are coming dangerously close to becoming interference with your quiet enjoyment of the property in accordance with the terms of your lease.

Make sure you keep a copy of the letter and proof of mailing, since it sounds like it may be necessary for you to start building up paperwork for a future court case. I don't think you have enough basis at this point to terminate the lease and win but the landlord's responses and future actions might cause that to change.

Good luck!

Please don't start a new thread about the same issue. I've merged your threads to keep all information together.

There is a legal situation where a "guest" can quickly become a legal resident, and the guest was neither screened nor accepted on the lease by the landlord. The situation could also be viewed as a sublet... which is obviously a major issue. By having people NOT on the lease in and out while you are not present.

Visitors are typically there for a few days... not a few weeks. And just on this board there are numerous situations where someone let someone use a spare room then they refuse to leave... pay no rent... and they have limited options for removing them. And in the case of the property owner... this is an aggravation and expense they don't want to be exposed to. Then there is liability issues to people they never gave permission to be residing on the property to.

There is a whole long list of reasons the landlord would have a problem with you mentioned. The lease was to you... not to you and everyone else.

Additionally... there are issues with insurance on properties that are not continuously occupied. Such as if there is a fire... they won't pay... if someone breaks in and takes the appliances, wiring and plumbing... they won't pay.

The landlord shoulders that burden... not many renters can be sued and be made to pay expenses of that magnitude. And its even harder if they are out of state. If they had the money they would own and not rent.

Getting engaged or married was your own choice. You could have shifted leaving until after your lease expired.

I know its not what you hoped to hear... but contracts are contracts... even when they become inconvenient for whatever reason. This is for everyone's protection.


As I believe was mentioned... you can talk with the landlord and find out how much you could pay them for an early release from the contract. That could be to both your benefits... you get out of the lease... and he can get someone else that will actually be there. But expect to sweeten the pot for them... it has to be worth more to them than the current lease as written. Don't expect to get out without paying something extra to them.

Thanks for the answer and the merge!!

Thanks for the answer and the merge!!!

Having read it all, I would agree with the others: unless there is something in the lease to the contrary, you have the right to let your friends and family use the place; as long as you don't charge them rent to "sublease".

You asked what you should do. You could do nothing other than to continue letting friends & family use the cottage, and if the landlord complains again, ignore it. Or it may carry more weight with the landlord if you have an attorney review the lease and all correspondence, and then send a strongly worded letter to the landlord. That, of course, is up to you.

Just an FYI - the other tenant on the property has constant guests (currently two who have been here a week), 3-6 cars in his drive and two in the garages, a large old dog with a skin issue who roams the property and the dog's meeses are left, and he and his daughter smoke in the house. I have no trouble with any of it, but feel there is a difference in the way I am interacted with. We live on the bay on the west coast of Florida. The house that is n front of both of our rentals is the one the landlord visits about 6 weeks a year. The landlord also own several other premium properties in town and is extremely wealthy. I feel there is no way I could win any kind of battle with him, especially in this state. If possible, I would like out of the lease if possible, and to have my family here when they need or want to be as my mom continues to decline. If my landlord attempts to evict me because of me bringing in guests he specifically told me I was not allowed to have I feel I will lose.

I wondered about this being waterfront or not. Owners are very touchy about cars/extra people on waterfronts, as it can get out of hand and resident neighbors start fighting with landlord neighbors.

Since you want out and the landlord isn't happy, I'm not sure I would even offer to sweeten the pot. Say you haven't violated any part of the lease but are sick of being given made up rules and why don't you mutually terminate.

... We live on the bay on the west coast of Florida. ...
Me too. Perhaps we're neighbors. :p


... ... The landlord also own several other premium properties in town and is extremely wealthy. I feel there is no way I could win any kind of battle with him, especially in this state. If possible, I would like out of the lease if possible, and to have my family here when they need or want to be as my mom continues to decline. If my landlord attempts to evict me because of me bringing in guests he specifically told me I was not allowed to have I feel I will lose.

Although there may be favoritism, I don't think it's as bad as you imagine it to be. Probably the main reason the landlord isn't going to take you to court is that he knows he doesn't have a case.

Thanks. I think I will be required to pay the full amount and might lose the right to use the place if he finds me in violation of his perceived regulations. The neighbors to the left are absent for three house, and all the houses to the right for six down are empty and for sale.

I understand I am legally respinsible for paying the balance of the lease and that the landlord in Florida does not need to mske any efffort to rent the place until that. If I am paying, can I still have use of it? What if I am eveicted, am I obligated to pay the balance and not be allowed to use it?

Can he legally say if I can have visitors, and who can stay overnight under what conditions? I am NOT talking about a move-in person or a pretend I am not living here person.