In the State of Florida how many days do I have to vacate the house?
I been living in this house for 22 months, we signed a lease with the landlord that was due the past Feb 2009.
Landlord agree to verbally renew the lease contract without signing any other new contract papers.
Last October 2009 we received papers from court letting us know as tenants that the house is going on foreclosure.
House is going on public auction on January 28, 2009.
Before we knew about the foreclosure landlord was collecting rent and it was paid on a timely manner. We have copies of checks given to him until Sept 2009, October and because landlord request, rent was paid in cash but he never gave us any kind of receipt or proof of payment of rent.
After that, we received several phone calls from a Real Estate agent who stated was representing the landlord. This person try to collect from us November rent, but since what happen with the previous amount paid we did not pay her.
On Dec 29, 2009 we were served with an eviction summons from the landlord, we answered the eviction summons inmediately and filed on court (we did not deposited on court the past due rent allegedly requested for the landlord)
On Dec31,2009 a "default" was mailed to us from court wich states:
"A default is herby entered as to the defendants in favor of the Plaintiff with regard to posession only"
My question is:
Since these papers were mailed to us, how many days do I have to move from the house..?
Landlord has the security deposit (1 month rent) that was never returned to us, how can we collect this money back?
Is it legal what the landlord is doing to us??
How do I request more time to move, because I haven't get a new house to move in..?
We are being accused under Fla Stat 772.11
The situation with this landlord is becoming a nigthmare for us,
As a continuation of my first inquiry about that my Landlord was losing his house on a foreclosure, that he had collected rent from us in a timely manner for the last year and a half except the last month because he initiated an eviction against us to vacate the house, we decided to move out before that happen, in it is just what we`ve done.
As of Jan 7 we vacated the house and the eviction papers were never served.
Now that I am just moved from that house, we received on the mail 3 letters (2 from the landlord y 1 from an attourney) stating that:
"we should inmediately tender the amount of US$ 15,000.00, serving as the treble damage amount of $ 5,000.00 in personal property that you (us) knowingly and deliberately converted from the landlord. You (us) converted the appliances and garage door motor with a total value of $ 5,000.00 belonging to the landlords, prior to your eviction from the residence you (us) were renting from them. Fla. Stat 772.11, "Civil remedy for the theft or exploitation... "
Basically the letters from the Landlord explains the same... and gives us 15 days to answer, if not he will dedusct this amount from my security deposit.
Is this legal..!
When we left the house and move to this new one, we left everything, clean, in place and in better condition that when we rented that house.
When we left that house around 3 pm on Jan 7th, almost inmediately the landlord changed locks so we couldn`t get into the house again.
Seens that this person is trying to get additional money from us, accusing us of stealing from his house..!
It has to be something that can be done against this people.
What should I do..!
Please help us..!