Tenant Eviction case--Ocala, FL

[Sendil Thangavelu]

Hi folks, A tenant moved into my brand new house and defaulted on two months rent within 3 months of moving in. After multiple promises of catching up on rent, they are now 3 months behind. Because they have 3 children, I waited, and have now finally filed for eviction. Now, they are contesting the eviction saying in their response to court that  I did not repair two issues because of which they are withholding rent. The issues being  1) inconsistencies in roof (dont know what this means)  2) a hole in the drywall behind stove in kitchen because of which there are spiders coming out of the wall and they had to kill two of them.

At this time, I am concerned that they will trash the house while leaving it. Is there a legal way to ensure they dont trash the place? Any experience you can share is appreciated as I am doing an eviction for the first time. This is a brand new house. 

Thank  you

Sendil

[Kim Meredith Hampton]

Sendil

In order to withhold rent they need to have notified you in writing about any issues and allowed you seven days to rectify. In addition, if they withhold rent, it has to be placed with the registry of the court where the property is located. If they have not done those two items, there should be no reason why the courts will holdup the eviction. 

Not sure what the interior will look like, but hopefully you have photos of prior to occupancy, so that you will be able to claim against their security deposit, and a judgement for past due rents and any damages