Finding a legally sufficient printable eviction notice to use in Florida may be harder than it initially appears. After all, a simple search in your favorite internet search engine will reveal several seemingly acceptable free eviction forms where all of the hard work has already been completed and all that is left to do is to fill in a few blank lines. Unfortunately, however, most of these free eviction notice forms will not pass Florida statutory scrutiny and if a landlord basis his or her eviction action upon such forms, will have their eviction proceedings thrown out of Court, leaving their tenants free to live in their rental property yet another month without paying rent.

The reason for the failure of many of such printable eviction notice is due, in large part, to the highly technical and somewhat complex interaction between the statutory language governing the preparation and service of Florida eviction notices and the case law interpreting those statutes.

As a threshold matter, when a landlord wants to sue his or her tenant for eviction arising out of the tenant's failure to pay the rent as it becomes due and payable, it is necessary for the landlord to make an official demand upon such tenant for payment of the outstanding rental obligations or for the surrender of possession of the rental premises back to the landlord. This demand must be in writing and is commonly referred to by several different names such as the 3 day eviction notice, the 3 day notice, the notice to quit, the notice to vacate, the eviction letter, or simply an eviction notice.

Despite having several names by which the eviction notice is referred, the purpose is singular -- to give the tenant proper notice of the amount of the rent then outstanding and a date certain by which that past due rent must be paid or the tenant must move out. The Florida 3 day eviction notice is what is known as a precondition to bringing an eviction action. Essentially, this means that if the landlord does not make this formal demand, or if the formal demand is done incorrectly, the landlord will be unable to evict the tenant until it is done (and done properly), even if the tenant admits that he or she has failed to pay the rent as required.

Florida Statute § 83.56(3) is the statute that controls the preparation and service of the Florida 3 day notice. This is an extremely helpful statute for the landlord in that it provides a printable eviction notice that should be used when serving the landlord's tenant for non-payment of rent. This notice must be substantially complied with and is set forth below:

Date: [Insert the Date Notice Is Prepared - preferably it is also the date the eviction notice will be served on the tenant]
To: [Insert the Name of the Tenant - this needs to be the name of the tenant as it appears in the residential lease agreement]

You are notified that you are indebted to me in the sum of $________________ [Insert the Amount of Rent and the Additional Rent Overdue] for the rent and use of the premises located at___________________________ [Insert the Address of Rental Property], _____________________ [Insert the City of the Rental Property], ________________________ [Insert the County of the Rental Property], now occupied by you. That rent was due on _______________ [Insert the Day the Rent Was Due] and I demand payment of the rent or possession of the premises within three days (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays) from the date of delivery of this notice, specifically, on or before ___________________ [Insert the Date Calculated In Accordance With the Applicable Florida Statute].

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I certify that a copy of this notice has been furnished to the above named tenant on ________________ [Insert the Date of Service of Process], at ______________a.m. / p.m., by:

1. ( ) Delivery
2. ( ) Posting in a conspicuous place on the premises.

_________________________________________________
[Insert the Name of the Landlord or the Property Manager]
[Insert the Address of the Landlord or the Property Manager]
[Insert the Telephone Number of the Landlord or the Property Manager]

There are many separate requirements that must be complied with when preparing this printable eviction notice.

First, the notice of eviction must be in writing and exactly specify the amount of rent that the landlord claims is currently owed by the tenant. If the notice is being made near in time to the next rental payment, that future rental payment is not to be included in the 3 day eviction notice.

Additionally, the 3 day eviction notice may not include any additional expenses and charges including, without limitation, late fees, interest charges, and any attorney's fees paid by the landlord in consulting an attorney, unless these charges have been expressly defined in the written residential lease agreement to be "rent" or "additional rent." The common way this is accomplished is to have a sentence in the lease agreement that provides: "The parties hereto each agree that all charges payable by the tenant under this lease, including but not limited to interest, late fees and attorneys' fees are hereby agreed to be treated as 'rent.'" If the applicable written lease agreement does not have a provision similar to this one, it is likely that these additional charges are not considered "rent" and, therefore, cannot be included in the Florida 3 day eviction notice.

The eviction notice must also provide that the tenant must vacate the rental premises in the event he or she chooses not to pay the past due rent, and must give the tenant the exact date by which one of these alternatives must occur. This is known as the tenant's three day grace period. It is important for the landlord to realize that just because it is called a three day eviction notice does not mean the tenant only gets three calendar days to respond. In fact, Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays that are officially observed by the Clerk of Court cannot be included in the grace period.

LEGAL DISCLAIMER: This article is written based on the current status of Florida’s landlord and tenant laws. However, this article is for general knowledge only and is not intended, in any way whatever, to constitute legal advice. Prior to following any recommendations listed in this article, please consult an attorney duly licensed in your state.