Florida Statutes

Fla. Stat. § 83.05 (2025)

Right of possession upon default in rent; determination of right of possession in action or surrender or abandonment of premises.

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83.05 Right of possession upon default in rent; determination of right of possession in action or surrender or abandonment of premises.—

(1) If any person leasing or renting any land or premises other than a dwelling unit fails to pay the rent at the time it becomes due, the lessor has the right to obtain possession of the premises as provided by law.

(2) The landlord shall recover possession of rented premises only:

(a) In an action for possession under s. 83.20, or other civil action in which the issue of right of possession is determined;

(b) When the tenant has surrendered possession of the rented premises to the landlord; or

(3) In the absence of actual knowledge of abandonment, it shall be presumed for purposes of paragraph (2)(c) that the tenant has abandoned the rented premises if:

(a) The landlord reasonably believes that the tenant has been absent from the rented premises for a period of 30 consecutive days;

(b) The rent is not current; and

However, this presumption does not apply if the rent is current or the tenant has notified the landlord in writing of an intended absence.

History.—s. 5, Nov. 21, 1828; RS 1750; GS 2226; RGS 3534; CGL 5398; s. 34, ch. 67-254; s. 1, ch. 83-151.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 17 cases (3 in the last 5 years), 1964–2025 · leading case: Herrell v. Seyfarth, Shaw, 491 So. 2d 1173 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986).

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Herrell v. Seyfarth, Shaw, 491 So. 2d 1173 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986). · cites it 12× “Perhaps the most profound change occurred in 1983 with the amendment to Section 83.05, Florida Statutes, eliminating the landlord's self-help right to eviction, and authorizing the landlord to recover possession of nonresidential rental property under the following conditions:…”

Exec. Square Off. Bldg. v. O'Connor & Assocs., Inc., 19 B.R. 143 (Bankr. N.D. Fla. 1981). · cites it 3× “Section 83.05, Florida Statutes, provides that upon the failure of a tenant to pay rent at the time it becomes due the lessor thereafter has the right of immediate possession and re-entry.”

Millard v. Brannan, 553 So. 2d 1248 (Fla. 2d DCA 1989). · cites it 2× “NOTES [*] Section 83.05, Florida Statutes (1983) provides: 83.”

Rodeway Inns of Am. v. Alpaugh, 390 So. 2d 370 (Fla. 2d DCA 1980). “§§ 83.05 et seq., Fla. Stat. If there is a lease, however, its provisions are conclusively controlling, and a court will not substitute its judgment for that of the parties by rewriting that lease.”

Palm Beach Florida Hotel v. Nantucket Enter., Inc., 211 So. 3d 42 (Fla. 4th DCA 2016). “1st DCA 1986) (“The effect of the amendment to section 83.05 is to abrogate the landlord’s right to obtain possession—unless he files an action for possession under section 83.”

Ardell v. Milner, 166 So. 2d 714 (Fla. 3d DCA 1964). · cites it 2× “However, under the common law, non-payment of rent does not as a general rule work a forfeiture and confers no right of reentry.”

Van Hoose v. Robbins, 165 So. 2d 209 (Fla. 2d DCA 1964). · cites it 2× “" (emphasis supplied) [5] Fla. Stat. § 83.05 , F.S.A. [6] Fla. Stat.”

Brownlee v. Sussman, 238 So. 2d 317 (Fla. 3d DCA 1970). · cites it 2× “*319 Although equitable defenses may not be raised in an action instituted pursuant to § 83.05, Fla. Stat., F.S.A., it should be noted that a court of equity will relieve against the forfeiture of a lease for the non-payment of rent if it is equitable to do so and if there is a…”

Csc Serviceworks, Inc. v. Boca Bayou Condo. Ass'n, Inc. (Fla. 4th DCA 2020). · cites it 5× “§ 83.05(2), Fla. Stat. (2016). The association, rather than filing eviction proceedings as section 83.”

Hallucination Media, LLC v. The Ritz Ybor, LLC (Bankr. M.D. Fla. 2021). · cites it 4× “May 28, 2020) (indicating that when analyzing a statute of frauds defense a “threshold question” is whether there is a contract under applicable law).”

Gulfstream Park Racing Assoc. v. Mi-vi, Inc. (Fla. 4th DCA 2019). · cites it 3× “The tenant alleged the landlord’s actions violated section 83.05(2), Florida Statutes (2017) because it engaged in self-help to evict the tenant.”

Justin Mooney & Katarina A. Korray v. Color Le Palais of Boynton Beach Homeowners Ass'n, Inc. (Fla. 4th DCA 2025). · cites it 2× “In Florida, a 1983 amendment to section 83.05, Florida Statutes, “abrogate[d] the landlord’s right to obtain possession—unless he files an action for possession under section 83.”

Show all 17 citing cases →

— 83.05(1) — 1 case

River Bridge Centre v. Stecco, 33 Fla. Supp. 2d 15 (Fla. Cty. Ct. 1989).

— 83.05(2) — 2 cases

Csc Serviceworks, Inc. v. Boca Bayou Condo. Ass'n, Inc. (Fla. 4th DCA 2020). “§ 83.05(2), Fla. Stat. (2016). The association, rather than filing eviction proceedings as section 83.”

Gulfstream Park Racing Assoc. v. Mi-vi, Inc. (Fla. 4th DCA 2019). “The tenant alleged the landlord’s actions violated section 83.05(2), Florida Statutes (2017) because it engaged in self-help to evict the tenant.”

— 83.05(2)(a) — 3 cases

Herrell v. Seyfarth, Shaw, 491 So. 2d 1173 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986). “Perhaps the most profound change occurred in 1983 with the amendment to Section 83.05, Florida Statutes, eliminating the landlord's self-help right to eviction, and authorizing the landlord to recover possession of nonresidential rental property under the following conditions:…”

Csc Serviceworks, Inc. v. Boca Bayou Condo. Ass'n, Inc. (Fla. 4th DCA 2020). “§ 83.05(2), Fla. Stat. (2016). The association, rather than filing eviction proceedings as section 83.”

River Bridge Centre v. Stecco, 33 Fla. Supp. 2d 15 (Fla. Cty. Ct. 1989).

— 83.05(2)(a)(b) — 1 case

— 83.05(2)(b) — 1 case

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