FL Military Members Lease Termination Rights

Military Members, if you are looking to rent a property near base in Florida, before you sign a lease, you should know that you are protected against early lease termination hassles under Statute 83.682.

With this regulation, you may lawfully terminate your rental agreement in the state of Florida without penalization under the following circumstances.

(1) The service member is required to move 35 miles or more from the location of the rental premises because of a permanent change of station

(2) The service member is involuntarily discharged or released from active duty earlier than expected

(3) The service member is released from active duty and wants to return home. If the rental home is 35 miles or more from the service member's prior home of record, he/she can terminate the agreement

(4) After entering into a rental agreement, the service member receives orders requiring him/her to move into government quarters OR the service member changes his/her mind and decides to move into government housing

(5) The service member gets over 60 days of temporary duty orders or temporary change of station orders to a place 35 miles or further from the current rental

(6) The service member has signed a lease for a rental, but before moving in, he/she receives change of orders to a place 35 miles or more from the rental

(7) In the worst case scenario, if a service member dies while active duty, another adult of his/her immediate family can terminate the service member's rental agreement. A copy of the service member's death certificate must be given to the landlord upon termination.

If you meet any of the above criteria, you must send a notice to the landlord 30 days before your expected move-out date. The notice must include either a copy of the appropriate official military orders or a written verification signed by the service member's commanding officer.

Your landlord does not have any reason to give you any grief if you meet the reasons listed above. This statute can be found in Florida Title VI (Civil Practice and Procedure), Chapter 83 (Landlord and Tenant). If there are any holdups or problems, point your landlord to this statute!