St. Petersburg Eviction Attorneys Near Me

St. Petersburg Eviction Attorneys Near Me

There’s a good reason that St. Petersburg Eviction Attorneys Near Me is a popular search term for landlords in Florida. Florida eviction law is complicated.

Owning rental properties can provide excellent investment opportunities. You build a property portfolio and earn passive income from tenants’ rent.

Unfortunately, a landlord’s life can also fill with challenges.

What do you do when your tenant stops paying rent or violates the lease? Are you prepared to evict?

Eviction law is confusing. Only a skilled and experienced lawyer can give your case the necessary representation to succeed.

In Florida, you must follow a specific procedure to evict a tenant, whether for cause or without cause. If you fail to follow eviction law, you may be unable to end the tenancy.

A Saint Petersburg eviction lawyer helps ensure you have complied with Florida eviction law, from sending a notice to filing an eviction lawsuit.

At the Lopez Law Group, we advocate for property owners in buying, selling, and managing property. With substantial experience in Florida real estate law, we have the knowledge and skill to help you with all real estate matters, including evictions.

Reach out today to schedule a consultation with a St. Petersburg residential real estate attorney

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St. Petersburg Eviction  Guide

• Why Choose Us – Lopez Law Group
• The Eviction Process
• Notice Requirements for Florida Evictions
• How Our St. Petersburg Eviction Lawyers Help Landlords
• I Provided Notice to My Tenant, But They Won’t Leave. Can I Change the Locks?
• My Tenant Left Their Property at My Rental Unit. What Should I Do With It?
• How Long Does an Eviction Take?
• Contact Our St. Petersburg Eviction Attorneys Today for Help

Why Choose Us – Lopez Law Group

At Lopez Law Group, we aim to serve as caring mentors for you. We are relatable because we are part of your community. Our clients are family, not just customers.

We pick up the phone when you need us—day or night.

We provide:

Passionate Advocacy: Serving as trusted attorneys for years, our team has earned a reputation for passionate advocacy on behalf of our clients. From residents and business owners to tenants, our clients are our community. Choosing our firm means you will benefit from extensive experience in all aspects of legal practice, from St. Petersburg to Tampa Bay and throughout Florida.

Comprehensive Legal Experience: Over the years, we have proudly represented the community’s interests through various legal processes and pride ourselves on being a vast knowledge resource in all aspects of the law.

Our attorneys come from diverse backgrounds and assist with various issues. We are here whether you have a property you want to purchase or were involved in a motor vehicle accident.

Constant Communication: We stay in constant contact with our clients and even offer our personal cell phone numbers so that you can reach us at any time, seven days a week. When you hire an attorney, they work for you, and you should never have to wonder how your case is going.

Choose Lopez Law Group for dedicated, compassionate, and skilled legal representation. We are here to support you every step of the way.

The Eviction Process

Under Florida law, a landlord can evict a residential tenant for several reasons. However, landlords must follow a specific procedure to evict a tenant properly. Failure to do so may result in a court refusing to evict a tenant.

The first step in eviction is to give the tenant proper notice. As outlined below, the type and length of notice will depend on why you are evicting the tenant and their rental agreement.

If the tenant hasn’t fixed the issues by the end of the notice period, you can proceed to the next step: filing an eviction lawsuit.

You can file a complaint with the county court.

This complaint must contain the following information:

1. Name of the landlord (plaintiff)
2. Name of the tenant (defendant)
3. Location of the property
4. An averment that the plaintiff owns the property
5. The rental agreement details (i.e., rent amount plus when the rent is due).
6. Information about any violation, such as nonpayment of rent.
7. A statement about when the tenant received the required notice and refused to resolve the violation or vacate the property.

A copy of the lease and the eviction notice must typically accompany the complaint.

Once you file the complaint, you should hire a lawyer to serve it to the tenant. The tenant has five business days to answer the complaint. You can seek a default final judgment if the tenant does not answer.

A judge issues a final judgment if they find in your favor after a hearing.

If the tenant has not vacated the property after a final judgment, you can obtain a Writ of Possession from the court. With a Writ of Possession, the County Sheriff will work with the landlord to remove the tenant, change the locks if necessary, and remove any of the tenant’s belongings.

Evictions are complicated, and failure to follow one or more of these steps may result in a judgment in favor of the tenant. The best way to ensure your eviction is correct is to work with a skilled St. Petersburg eviction attorney.

Notice Requirements for Florida Evictions

In an eviction for cause – such as nonpayment of rent, lease violations, or illegal actions – the landlord must provide the tenant with written notice of termination. The type and timing of this notice will depend on the reason for the eviction.

For failure to pay rent, a landlord must give the tenant a three-day notice to pay rent or quit. This notice must state that the tenant has three days (excluding weekends and holidays) to pay their outstanding rent or move out of the unit. If the tenant does not pay the rent within three days, the landlord can file an eviction lawsuit.

If a tenant violates the lease or rental agreement and can cure the violation, a landlord must provide a seven-day notice to cure. This notice states that the tenant has seven days to comply with the rental agreement, or the landlord will terminate the tenancy. If the tenant does not cure or fix the issue, the landlord can file an eviction lawsuit with the local court.

If a tenant intentionally destroys the rental property or other tenants’ property, creates unreasonable disturbances, or repeats the same lease violation within 12 months, a landlord can issue a seven-day unconditional quit notice.

This notice informs the tenant that the tenant must move out of the rental unit within seven days, or the landlord will file an eviction lawsuit. This type of notice can only be used in limited circumstances, as described above.

In some situations, a landlord wishes to terminate a lease without cause. The ability to do this depends on the type of rental agreement—fixed-term or month-to-month.

For a fixed-term lease, a landlord must wait until the end of the rental term to terminate the tenancy. A landlord does not have to notify a tenant unless the lease specifically requires it.

If the tenant does not ask to renew the lease, the landlord can automatically terminate the tenancy at the end of the lease.

However, if a tenant is on a month-to-month lease or rental agreement, the landlord must provide 15 days’ written notice.

This notice must inform the tenant that their tenancy will end in 15 days, so they must move out then. If the rental agreement is for a different amount of time – such as year-to-year – then a landlord must give a shorter or longer notice period, depending on the length of the tenancy.

These rules may seem burdensome, and they often present challenges for landlords, particularly when a tenant won’t pay rent or otherwise violates the terms of their lease. However, the laws protect tenants and ensure that they have enough time to find a new place to live before an eviction.

How Our St. Petersburg Eviction Lawyers Help Landlords

Many landlords assume that they can handle the eviction process independently—and in some situations, that is true. However, several potential pitfalls can make evicting a tenant much more challenging and expensive.

It often costs far less to do it right and hire a St. Petersburg eviction attorney.

Any mistake in the paperwork or notice requirements can force you to restart the eviction process. Every day a problem tenant remains in possession of your property you lose money, especially if they won’t pay rent or they damage your property.

A lawyer familiar with Florida’s landlord and tenant law and local court procedures streamlines the process, making it far more manageable and less stressful for the property owner.

In addition to helping you avoid costly mistakes, hiring a lawyer helps you optimize your time. Many landlords have full-time jobs or own other businesses.

Figuring out how to evict a tenant legally under Florida law takes time and effort. Hiring someone with the necessary knowledge and skills is a far better use of your limited time than trying to do it yourself.

If you own rental properties, an attorney can help you with every aspect of the process, from purchasing real estate to drafting leases to evicting tenants for nonpayment of rent or lease violations. They will protect your interests and investment, helping you maximize the value of your property.

I Provided Notice to My Tenant, But They Won’t Leave. Can I Change the Locks?

No. Florida law prohibits self-help evictions of tenants in residential properties. You can only remove a tenant from a rental unit after a landlord has won an eviction lawsuit. In this situation, a sheriff or constable can remove the tenant.

Engaging in self-help evictions or other illegal eviction procedures can lead to a lawsuit. Tenants can file a lawsuit against a landlord for removing or attempting to remove them without an eviction order.

Contact the Lopez Law Group to speak to a St. Petersburg eviction lawyer about properly and legally evicting a tenant.

My Tenant Left Their Property at My Rental Unit. What Should I Do With It?

If a tenant moves out and leaves property behind, the landlord must notify the tenant in writing of the abandoned personal items. This notice must give the tenant at least ten days to claim the property if they received the notice in hand or 15 days if they received it by mail.

After that period, the landlord can sell or dispose of the property. Landlords can also charge the former tenant reasonable storage costs.

If you have questions about handling an eviction, the Lopez Law Group can help. As experienced eviction attorneys in St. Petersburg, FL, we have substantial experience guiding clients through each step of the process.

How Long Does an Eviction Take?

It depends. If a tenant doesn’t contest the eviction and moves out in response to a notice of termination, it could take as little as a week to get possession of your property.

However, if the tenant contests the eviction or you must go to a hearing, the process could take four to six weeks to complete.

In some cases, an eviction takes even longer, such as when a tenant has a viable defense against it.

The Lopez Law Group can help ensure a smooth process. Contact us today to schedule a consultation with an eviction lawyer in St. Petersburg, FL.

Contact Our St. Petersburg Eviction Attorneys Today for Help

St. Petersburg Eviction Lawyer, SeanCarlo Lopez

If you own investment properties in or around St. Petersburg, you need a lawyer with a solid understanding of Florida real estate law. You will cut short your career as a landlord without a skilled eviction attorney to explain and help enforce the laws and procedures of property management.

An experienced eviction attorney ensures that when your tenants break their rental contract, you can evict them properly, per Florida law.

The Lopez Law Group represents investors and property owners in every real estate matter. We work hard to protect our client’s interests and help them achieve the best possible outcome for their situation.

To learn more or for your consultation with an eviction attorney near you, call us at (727) 933-0015 or fill out our online contact form.

Our Office Location

Lopez Law Group

700 7th Ave N, Suite A,
St. Petersburg, FL 33701