What are my rights if I am currently renting a home that was flooded by a tropical storm?
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What are my rights if I am currently renting a home that was flooded by a tropical storm?
We had 6 inches of water in the home and lost some furniture and personal items. Our landlord came in and stated she was going to replace the floor by tiling the entire home. She came in pulled up the floors and left us with concrete floors, came back the next day and gave us a 30 day notice to vacate the home. She told us she would not charge us for the month’s rent and said that was how she was going to keep our deposit in lieu of that last month’s rent. Can she do this and do I have any recourse of legal actions?
Asked on July 15, 2012 under Real Estate Law, Florida
Answers:
Jonathan Pollard / Pollard LLC
Answered 11 years ago | Contributor
In my view, the fact that the property was flooded rendered the property less valuable than what you paid for it under the lease. Therefore, the landlord should have reduced your rent for the final month. That the landlord has said "I won't charge you but will keep your security deposit" is unacceptable. You should contact the landlord in writing and indicate (1) that the final month rent must be reduced because of the damage to the property (2) demand that your security deposit be refunded according to standard procedure.
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