FL H0849

Amends Florida Statutes Section 83.60 to allow courts to waive the requirement that tenants pay rent into the court registry when defending against eviction actions for reasons other than non-payment.

Court may waive the rent deposit requirement if the landlord lacks standing, the court lacks jurisdiction, the landlord fails to comply with notice requirements or building/housing/health codes, the landlord acts in bad faith, or violates landlord-tenant law provisions.

Failure of a tenant to pay rent into the registry, file a motion to determine rent amount, or file a motion to waive the requirement within 5 days (excluding weekends and holidays) after service of process results in automatic waiver of all defenses except payment, and landlord receives immediate default judgment for eviction.

Tenants who file a motion to determine rent or waive the deposit requirement are entitled to a hearing; documentation supporting claims that the alleged rent is incorrect is required.

Public housing tenants and those receiving rent subsidies need only deposit the portion of rent for which they are responsible under their federal, state, or local assistance program.