Evictions are a part of being in the rental business. Vacancy rates and eviction costs are built into the asset portfolio assumptions knowing that evictions are inevitable. For corporate landlords in Florida, regardless of whether they have a property manager or not, an attorney must file and handle the eviction. See “Corporate Landlords Need an Attorney”.
For property managers, the Florida Supreme Court allows the manager to file an eviction for non-payment of rent but only if the property manager qualifies as a “property manager” and the eviction is non-contested. See court decision. Of course, it is always advisable to hire an attorney to handle your evictions, because it is a legal matter that affects your rights and obligations as a landlord.
What Should Your Eviction Attorney Be Doing for You?
While some landlords have the perception that evictions are simple, the truth is, there are many laws and court decisions that apply to and impact evictions, which make eviction actions more complicated than one may think. Experienced landlord attorneys should know the intricacies of eviction laws and rules and should approach every eviction case with proper review and precision.
Eviction laws place a heavy emphasis on properly delivering proper notice to the other party (the tenant), the Residential Landlord-Tenant Act, and the lease agreement (if there is one). If the landlord does not follow applicable laws regarding notice, termination of the tenancy, and eviction process, the landlord may face difficulties in prevailing in the eviction action, including outright dismissal of the eviction, and the case may take much longer than desired.
Landlord-Tenant attorneys are not as common as other kinds of attorneys in Florida. While some attorneys may have “low” eviction fees, some may not give the kind of care to the evictions that the landlords need to better their rental business and ensure the best chances of success in the eviction action. Other attorneys may charge “high” fees but may not even specialize in landlord-tenant law. Knowing the attorney well enough to understand whom the landlord should hire and with whom to form a long-lasting relationship is important to the landlord’s success.
Key Responsibilities of a Landlord Attorney During Eviction Actions
The landlord attorney should be doing the following, at a minimum, when handling an eviction action for the landlord:
- Use a case management software program to better serve the landlord’s needs, e.g. exchanging information, communicating with the client on updates, creating and sharing calendar events, etc.
- Have the landlord provide the law firm with answers to an eviction case intake form, to ensure the attorney and staff have sufficient information to advise the client and properly handle the eviction action.
- Gather all relevant information pertaining to the facts of the eviction from the client and relevant witnesses.
- Gather all relevant documents from the landlord.
- Review the landlord’s notice to pay, notice to cure, or notice of termination language for legal sufficiency.
- Review the notice deadlines according to Florida laws regarding calculation of notice periods.
- Ensure proper delivery of the notice to the tenant.
- Review the rent amount demanded in a notice to pay and rent payment ledger for legal sufficiency.
- Review the “specificity” requirements in the notice.
- Review the lease agreement to ensure the notice and factual basis of the eviction comport to the lease terms.
- Advise the landlord on any weaknesses in the case (e.g. potential tenant defenses or claims) and take needed action to correct or mitigate weaknesses.
- Inform the landlord on what the case generally looks like given the facts of the case (especially when the client is not a repeat client or is new to the eviction experience).
- Advise the landlord on whether there is more than 1 cause of action to remove the tenants.
- Prepare and file the eviction in a timely manner once all information is received to file the action in good faith.
- Take steps in the eviction action as quickly as possible to avoid unnecessary delays in the case.
- Advise the landlord on tenant responses (if any) and “next steps” in the action contemporaneously with their occurrence.
- Present to the landlord with possibilities of settlement with the tenant (See “Are You Taking Advantage of Settlement Agreements in Your Eviction Actions?”).
- When the tenant files an answer or response, prepare and file needed motions or replies to prevent the tenant from unnecessarily delaying the eviction action and to protect the landlord’s claims and positions in the case.
- Obtain final judgment as quickly as possible, taking actions on the case as soon as they can be taken.
When the attorney helps the landlord set up the eviction case properly; files and processes the eviction timely and proficiently; and keeps the landlord updated contemporaneously with the case events, the landlord will obtain a final judgment in the eviction much more quickly and with a better experience. The landlord will have confidence in knowing that the attorney is handling the eviction properly and timely and will have a better understanding of how to better manage their rental properties in the future.
Property Management Law Solutions, LLC is a Florida law firm that specializes in landlord-tenant law and is a landlord-only law firm. We provide statewide services including evictions, consultation plans, education and training, membership plans, lease agreement plans and more. If you are a landlord or property manager, contact us today or subscribe to one of our online membership plans.