Commercial Eviction
In Florida.

A commercial tenant has stopped paying and is still occupying your space. Commercial eviction is the court process that returns the premises to you, and, done correctly, the claim that recovers the rent you are owed on top of it.

Removing a non-paying commercial tenant and recovering the rent

You own or manage commercial space, and a tenant has stopped paying. They are still there, still operating, still using the electricity you may be paying for. Every month they stay is a month you cannot re-let the space and a month the balance grows. Florida law gives a commercial landlord a fast route to possession and a separate claim for the money. It also punishes landlords who take shortcuts. This page is about doing it right.

What a commercial eviction is

A commercial, or nonresidential, eviction is a lawsuit to recover possession of leased business premises from a tenant who has defaulted, most often by failing to pay rent. It is governed by Part I of Chapter 83 of the Florida Statutes, which is separate from, and considerably less protective of tenants than, the residential landlord-tenant law. In a commercial lease, the lease itself controls most questions: what counts as default, how much notice is required, whether attorney's fees are recoverable, and what the landlord may do with the tenant's property. Where the lease is silent, the statute fills the gap.

For nonpayment of rent, the statute requires a written three-day notice demanding payment or possession before suit is filed. If the tenant does not pay or leave, the landlord files a complaint for possession in county court under Florida's summary procedure, which moves faster than an ordinary civil case. The landlord may also, in the same suit or separately, sue for the unpaid rent and other damages under the lease.

Why this matters to your investment

Two features of Florida commercial eviction law work strongly in a landlord's favor, and both are lost if the case is handled carelessly. The first is the rent-deposit requirement: a commercial tenant who wants to defend an eviction for nonpayment must pay into the court registry the rent alleged to be due, and continue paying rent as it comes due during the case. A tenant who does not is deemed to have waived its defenses, and the landlord is entitled to an immediate judgment for possession. The second is speed: summary procedure gives the tenant five days to answer, and a possession case that is properly pleaded can be resolved in weeks.

Against that, the law is unforgiving of self-help. Changing the locks, shutting off utilities, or removing the tenant's property without a court order and a sheriff exposes the landlord to liability for the tenant's damages, which can include lost business profits, and can convert a strong eviction into a losing lawsuit. The statute does allow a landlord to retake premises the tenant has abandoned, and many leases say so, but "abandoned" is a legal conclusion a judge will test. When in doubt, file.

Money is the other half. A Florida commercial landlord whose tenant defaults may, depending on the lease, treat the lease as ended and sue for rent through the date of termination; retake possession for the tenant's account and re-let, holding the tenant liable for the shortfall; or leave the premises vacant and sue for rent as it comes due. Unlike residential landlords, a commercial landlord generally has no statutory duty to mitigate, though the lease may impose one and the choice among remedies has consequences that should be made deliberately.

Just suppose

The following is an illustrative example, written to show how the process works. It is not a real client, a real matter, or a promise of any result.

Imagine you own a small retail center on Okeechobee Boulevard in West Palm Beach. One of your tenants, a specialty fitness studio on a five-year lease at $6,800 a month, has paid nothing for three months. The owner tells you business is slow and asks for patience. The lease has a personal guaranty, an attorney's-fee clause, and a clause allowing you to re-let and hold the tenant liable for the difference. You have a prospective tenant for the space. You also have a property manager who has suggested changing the locks over the weekend.

You do not change the locks. Counsel serves a three-day notice for the $20,400 in unpaid rent, delivered as the lease requires. The tenant does not pay. A complaint for possession is filed in Palm Beach County under summary procedure, with a separate count for damages against the studio and the guarantor. The tenant files an answer claiming the HVAC was inadequate but does not deposit the rent into the registry. Counsel moves for immediate default on the possession count under the rent-deposit statute; the court grants it and issues a writ of possession, which the sheriff executes. The tenant's equipment is dealt with as the lease and the statute provide, and the space is turned over to the new tenant within six weeks of the first notice, at a slightly lower rent.

The damages count continues against the studio and its owner for the unpaid rent, the shortfall on the re-let for the balance of the term, and attorney's fees under the lease. The owner, who signed the guaranty, settles before trial, and the judgment against the studio is enforced through garnishment of the merchant account it still uses at its new, smaller location.

How commercial eviction works in Florida

Start with the lease. It determines the notice, the remedies, the fee entitlement, and how the tenant's property is handled. Then the statutory notice for nonpayment, three days excluding weekends and legal holidays, served in the manner the lease or statute requires. Then the complaint, filed in the county where the property sits, pleading possession under summary procedure and, where warranted, damages under the lease and the guaranty. If the tenant fails to answer or fails to deposit rent, the landlord moves for default and a writ of possession. If the tenant answers and deposits, the possession claim is heard promptly and the damages claim follows the ordinary track.

Once possession is recovered, the damages claim is an ordinary collection matter: judgment, then enforcement against the former tenant and any guarantor, including levy on business assets, garnishment of accounts, and the other tools described on this site. A landlord's claim does not end at the door.

Common questions

Can I lock the tenant out?

Not without a court order, unless the tenant has genuinely abandoned the premises and the lease permits re-entry. Self-help exposes you to liability for the tenant's damages. File instead; it is faster than it sounds.

Can I recover my attorney's fees?

Only if the lease provides for them. Florida's statute does not award fees to a commercial landlord on its own. If your lease has no fee clause, fix it before the next tenant.

Do I have to try to re-let the space?

Generally, no statutory duty to mitigate applies to a Florida commercial landlord, but your lease may impose one, and the remedy you choose affects what you can recover. Decide deliberately.

What about the tenant's equipment and inventory?

The lease usually addresses it, and Florida gives a commercial landlord a lien for rent on the tenant's property on the premises, enforceable through a separate distress proceeding. Do not remove or sell the tenant's property without following the statute.

The discipline behind the result

A commercial eviction is won by following Chapter 83 exactly, and the rent is recovered by treating the damages claim as the collection matter it is. We do both, in the right order, so the space comes back quickly and the money follows. Call (813) 288-1881.