Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Florida
Landlord rights
My current tenant is refusing us access to show our house to new tenants during thier last month in the home. We have asked and told with sometimes 3 days notice and we scheduled 8 different couples on a Sunday all at the same time, only to have them cancel at the last minute and then call hysterical when some we could not contact showed. At this time we will loose a months rent because they will not allow us access. Do we have a right to our own house to show to prospective new tenants? Can we chaged the people who are in there now for the cost od the advertising and time we won't have tenants because they won't co-operate? They have violated the lease in three differnt ways, we found this month when we can to change the air filters. They removed flooring, 2 large dogs they have no premission to have and the yard has been neglected. All of those things are in the lease. I don't think I have in the lease the right to show the property, but I have never had nastey people like this before. They won't let anyone, including us, enter the house unless they are there. It makes me think they have something to hide.
What are my rights here?
Carolyn
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Landlord rights
Even if you do not have a specific provision in your lease, there is a general right for a landlord to inspect the property upon "reasonable notice". But to enforce that right if they don't cooperate would require a court order. The lease term will probably be up by the time you get an order. What you may be able to do is charge the security deposit when they leave (assuming you have a security deposit). If you do, you will be able to charge ALL related expenses, including the costs associated with the removal of the floor, the dogs, etc. If the charges exceed the deposit, you could sue for the difference. To charge the deposit and preserve the right to so, however, you must make sure you very precisely follow the statutory procedures for providing notice on the deposit.
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