Tenant's Notice of Intention to Withhold Rent
(FL)

Summary

This tenant's notice of intention to withhold rent may be used by a tenant in Florida to notify its landlord that it intends to withhold rent due to the landlord's failure to maintain the premises. This template contains practical guidance and drafting notes. In Florida, both residential and commercial tenants have a statutory right to withhold rent if the landlord does not maintain the premises in tenantable condition. Fla. Stat. Ann. § 83.56 (for residential tenants); Fla. Stat. Ann. § 83.201 (for commercial tenants). Such failure is a defense against eviction for the failure to pay rent, however, to assert the defense the tenant must show that it has given the landlord the statutorily required notice of its intent to withhold rent. In the case of residential tenants, at least seven days must have passed since the giving of the notice (Fla. Stat. Ann. § 83.60(2)) while for commercial tenants the requirement is 20 days (Fla. Stat. Ann. § 83.201). For a full listing of key content covering residential leasing agreements, see Residential Leasing Resource Kit. For guidance on the eviction process in Florida see Residential Eviction (FL), Commercial Eviction (FL), and Eviction Resource Kit (FL).