Updated on

Implied Warranty of Habitability in Florida

Florida landlords are required to keep their rental properties in safe and livable condition.


According to the state’s “implied warranty of habitability,” Florida tenants are guaranteed a livable rental without serious hazards or dangerous conditions. If a unit develops a major problem and the landlord doesn't take action, a tenant has two options. They can remain in the rental and withhold partial rent until the issue is fixed. Or, if the unit is completely uninhabitable, they can move out and terminate their lease.

Maintenance requirements for Florida landlords

In Florida, the warranty of habitability is established by statute1. State law requires landlords to meet and maintain certain housing standards when renting out property. Either they must comply with any local building, housing, and health codes, or—if there are no local codes—then they must take responsibility for:

  • Structural Repairs: Landlords are responsible for structural repairs to the rental property. This means maintaining windows, floors, roofs, doors, foundations, porches, exterior walls, and other structural components so they’re in reasonable working condition.
  • Window screens: Florida legislation requires landlords to install window screens at the beginning of a tenancy and conduct any repairs required to keep screens in reasonable condition.

Certain responsibilities are considered best practice for a landlord to take on, but Florida laws allow landlords of single-family homes or duplexes to make the tenant responsible for certain repairs as long as both parties agree. They include:

  • Pests like rats, mice, roaches, and ants, need to be kept out of the premises. If tenants need to spend time away from the rental unit in order to conduct an extermination, the rent should be abated for however many days they were away from home. This period cannot exceed four days and tenants must be given seven days written notice.
  • Keys and locks must be provided to tenants and kept in working condition.
  • Safe and clean conditions for common areas
  • Disposal facilities for garbage
  • Functioning heat, hot water, and running water facilities

It's also a good idea for all landlords to install smoke detectors, but Florida law only requires this for owners of single-family homes.

What Florida landlords aren't responsible for

The landlord is not responsible to the tenant for conditions created or caused by the negligent or wrongful act or omission of the tenant, a member of the tenant’s family, or other person on the premises with the tenant’s consent.

Florida law 2 requires tenants to not just keep their overall unit in "clean and sanitary condition," but also specifically:

  • Remove garbage from their unit
  • Maintain plumbing fixtures in a clean and sanitary condition and "in repair." Plumbing fixtures refer to faucets, sinks, and toilets.
  • Use electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, and elevator systems in "a reasonable manner"
  • Refrain from destroying or damaging any part of the premises

Options for tenants

If a rental unit develops a serious problem and no longer meets the requirements listed by Florida law, the landlord is required to fix it. If they refuse or ignore a tenant’s repair request, then the tenant is legally allowed to withhold rent—as long as they follow the exact process laid out in the law.3 The other option for tenants with an unresponsive landlord is to terminate their lease entirely and move out.

Tenants in Florida are not allowed to make repairs on their own and deduct the cost from their rent, however.


[1] Florida Statute § 83.51

[2] Florida Statute § 83.52

[3] Florida Statutes § 83.60

The information provided on this website does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice.