We buy houses in Florida. Selling a house is tricky enough when you add tenants to the mix adds another aspect to selling. You have rights, and your tenant has tenant rights in Florida, so it’s important to keep those in mind when selling rental property with a tenant. If your tenant has a month-to-month lease, you will be able to sell your house a lot quicker than if your tenant has a yearly lease agreement. But, before you put that for sale sign in the yard, make sure you know your rights and how to notify your tenant of your plans to sell your Florida rental property. We are homebuyers in Florida and this article will equip you with the right information when selling your rental property!
Tips On Selling A House With Tenants In Florida
Know The Terms Of Your Lease In Florida
To figure out where you stand when it comes to selling a house with tenants in Florida, you should review the terms of the lease agreement that you and your tenant have agreed to. Did they sign a yearly lease or a month to month lease agreement? That could be a factor in how long you will need to wait to list your property. In this situation, it’s best to have a lease agreement in writing to refer to. In the state of Florida, the termination of tendency has specific terms for a year to year lease agreements and month to month. A year-to-year lease agreement notice to vacate the property must be provided at least 60 days before the annual lease-end.
With a month to month lease agreement, notice must be given no less than 15 days before the end of the monthly period. If there isn’t a written lease agreement, the lease duration is determined by how the rent is paid. Weekly payments would mean the lease is weekly, monthly payments mean the lease is month to month, and so on.
Whatever lease agreement you have, it would be best to give your tenant notice in writing not only for your tenant’s records but for you to have documentation that you requested them to vacate.
Know The Florida Tenant Eviction Laws
With a month to month lease, you will be able to list your property pretty quickly than a year-to-year lease agreement. But something to keep in mind that could break the lease agreement sooner is if the tenants violate the lease agreement. Legally there are three ways you can terminate the lease agreement.
- Pay Rent Or Quit Notice – If the tenant hasn’t paid- this Florida tenant eviction law is called a pay rent or quit notice. In other words, when the renter has not paid rent, they are given a pay rent or quit notice and given seven days in the state of Florida to pay the rent or move out (quit).
- Cure Or Quit – this is when the tenant violates a term of the lease. The Florida tenant eviction law applies to terms like keeping a pet in a no-pet policy or if the tenant allowed an unauthorized person to live in the property or sublease without permission. And if the tenant is disrupting other tenants or neighbors with loud music or parties at the property. Typically landlords give the tenant a specific amount of time to correct this, anywhere from 3-30 days.
- Unconditional Quit Notice – If your tenant has violated the lease two or more times, like paying rent late they can lose the right to a second chance. This Florida tenant eviction law also applies to situations that can’t be corrected or cured. For example, if your tenant decides to make unapproved alterations or improvements to the property. You can also evict your resident if they damage the property or engage in illegal activity at the home. If the tenant doesn’t leave in the timeframe specified in your unconditional quit notice, then you may file an eviction lawsuit.
Hopefully, you have good tenants, and it won’t come to this. But it’s good to know what your tenant rights in Florida are and that you’re able to get out of a lease depending on the situation.
Figure Out If You Want To Sell With The Tenants In Florida
Once you figure out what time frame you’re working with for your tenant to vacate, you will need to decide if you would like to sell while the tenants live in the property or sell after they move out. There are some advantages and disadvantages to selling with your tenants still in residence. You will need to coordinate showings with the renters, and depending on the lease agreement, find a motivated buyer that would be willing to take on the current lease. If you were to wait to sell, you might have to wait a while before your tenant’s lease is up, especially if they have a year-to-year lease. But you probably will find more potential buyers when the home is vacant than if tenants lived there and came with it.
Decide How To Sell The Property In Florida
After you have looked over the terms of your lease and decided if you would like to sell with the renters still in the property or waiting until their lease is up, it’s time to figure out how you would like to sell you a rental property. There are three ways you can sell a rental home, each with its pros and cons.
- Sell By Owner
- Sell With a Real Estate Agent
- Sell to a Cash Home Buyer
Let’s take a closer look at the pros and cons of selling using each of these options.
Sell By Owner In FL
Selling by owner would make you assume you could save a lot of money doing things independently. Think again, the responsibilities of sell by owner will fall on your shoulders to handle. You will be in charge of listing, marketing, negotiating, paperwork, taking calls, and showing the property. Besides that, since you have or had renters living in the property, you may need to do some general repairs, painting, cleaning, carpet cleaning to get the house ready to sell. The hardest part of selling by owner is setting the listing price. If you price too high, your rental property could sit on the market for months without any interest resulting in you dropping the price. If you price too low, prospective buyers may think something is wrong with the home causing a lack of interest. Selling by owner takes time, money, and months of uncertainty.
Sell With A Real Estate Agent In FL
After learning all the duties selling by owner would entail, you’re probably interested in selling with an agent. All the responsibilities of selling by owner will fall to your agent to handle. Also, your realtor will be able to advise you on how much to list for and usually recommend listing the home a little bit higher than the average in the area. This still doesn’t guarantee your rental property will sell. Though working with an agent may seem easier the catch to this is their commission fees for selling your house. These commissions can range from 5-6% of the final sale price. For example, if the rental property sells for $300,000, commissions could cost $18,000. So not only will you owe commissions but will need to cover repairs and general maintenance while waiting for the property to sell.
Sell To A Home Buyer In FL
You can also sell your rental property by selling directly to a homebuyer like Florida Cash Home Buyers. Homebuyers buy real estate in as-is condition, saving you time and money on repairs and renovations. When selling directly to a home investor, real estate agents don’t have to be involved in the process, saving you the cost of realtor commissions. Also, house buyers pay in cash, which allows them to close quickly since they don’t have to wait on bank financing like traditional buyers. Repairs are not necessary, and they can close in a timeframe that works best for you. This is a great option to save money and avoid the hassle of selling a house with tenants in Florida.
Notify Your Tenant In Florida
After you decide how you plan to sell your home, you will need to notify your tenants of your intention to sell the house. If you intend to sell without your tenants in the home, you should inform them in writing with these six elements.
- Reason For The Notice
As a landlord, it is important to say why you want your tenant to vacate the home. The reason should be noted in the first paragraph of the letter and should include as many details as possible.
- Use Formal Language
A notice letter is a professional and formal document, and therefore it should come across that way. Use third-person language in the letter to make it sound more appropriate and avoid using any informal or unofficial vocabulary.
- The Specific Date To Vacate
Make sure to note the date and the time the tenant needs to vacate the space. This will also help the tenant organize his/her calendar and be prepared before the deadline.
- Address How Formalities Will Be Handled
Formalities could be the payment of the rent, deposit, etc. before the tenant leaves the space that should be mentioned. Stating all these formalities in the notification will make it clear to the tenant about your plan to take care of these important details.
- Proofread The Letter
As the landlord, you don’t want to get embarrassed due to typos or any misinformation in the letter. It wouldn’t hurt to recheck the document for any grammatical errors, which can easily be done online with a grammar tool. Also, remove any incorrect information in the letter.
- Get Legal Advice
Getting legal advice wouldn’t hurt. That way, someone well versed in Florida law can go over your notification letter and clarify your legal rights.
How To Notify The Tenant In Florida If You’re Selling While They Live There
If you plan to sell with the tenants still living at the property, you will want to notify them as well. Documenting this in a letter would be best, and it should contain as much information as possible to clarify your expectations when showing the property. Being upfront will hopefully help your tenants to want to be more cooperative. It would be good to add some of these elements listed below.
- Basic Information
The letter should contain the date, the tenant name or names, and the property address. Identifying information is necessary to confirm the tenant gets the right document regarding the rental property they are currently occupying.
- Specifics Of Your Plan To Sell
Next, share with the tenant your plans to sell and explain what will happen next. For instance- when you plan to put the home on the market? If there are showings. And if there is anything they will be responsible for doing while the property is on the market?
- Showing Notice
If possible, let the tenant know how much notice you are legally required to give when you schedule a property viewing. Which in Florida, is 12 hours notice. Also, how they will be notified either by phone call, text, or email. This will give them an idea of what type of notifications and showing situations they can expect through the sale process. This is also where you can add notes to explain what you expect the house’s condition to be in for showings. Beds need to be made, no dirty dishes in the sink, the house should be clean and tidy, and any animals need to be put in crates, and if the tenant can be at the property during the walk-thru.
- Bonus Incentives
Adding a bonus incentive is optional but may be helpful to your situation. Some landlords find that giving a little additional relief to the tenant throughout the sale process helps ease the transition.
Final Thoughts About Selling Your House With Tenants In FL
When it comes to selling a house with tenants in Florida, it’s important to know tenant rights. That way, you know the laws to be aware of and how you need to notify your tenants of your intentions to sell. Also, it’s important to know your rights as the landlord, specifically in the state of Florida, that way, you know legally what you can and can’t do. If you’re ever unsure about the laws and how to sell a house with tenants in Florida, getting legal advice would always be helpful.
Sell My House In Florida
If you want to sell your house in Florida and the stress-free way of selling sounds good to you, we recommend working with Florida Cash Home Buyers. They are professional FL home buyers who offer cash for houses in Florida. They buy properties all around the Florida area and they help find solutions for people facing bankruptcy, foreclosure, dealing with major home repairs, and properties with tenants, to name a few. If you’re selling a house with tenants in Florida, give Florida Cash Home Buyers a call or get a no-obligation cash offer on your property today!