Tags
83.232, 83.60(2), accrues, court registry, deposit rent, pendency
In commercial evictions Section 83.232 governs the payment of rent in to the court registry.
§83..232 (1) provides: If the amount is uncontested, the tenant shall pay the amount claimed into the court registry within 5 business days of being served.
If contested, the tenant shall pay the amount determined by the court to be due on the day the court makes the determination. The court has the discretion to extend the payment date on good cause. The court also has the discretion to order payment into the court registry even though tenant has alleged a defense of payment or satisfaction.
If rent accrues during the pendency of the case, the due date is the lease due date.
§83..232 (5) provides that once the court has ordered payment of rent into the court registry, failure to deposit into the court registry will constitute an absolute waiver of the tenant’s defenses.
In 214 Main Street Corp. v. Tanksley, 947 So.2d 490 (Fla. App., 2006), the court ordered the tenant to post the past due rent in to the court registry by July 20, 2005, and rent as it accrued during the pendency of the case by the first of each month. On September 8, 2005 the tenant deposited September and October rent into the court registry. On November 3, 2005 tenant had not posted the rent accrued into the court registry, and the landlord filed an ex-parte motion for default. The court granted a judgment for possession November 9, 2005. On November 14, 2005 the tenant filed a motion to stay the writ and deposited November and December rent into the court registry based on excusable neglect. The court granted the motion to quash the writ of possession and the landlord appealed.
The appellate court ruled that §83.232 (5) does not allow for a procedure whereby a trial court may excuse the tenant’s noncompliance with its prior order. The held that the trial court erred in setting aside the default and writ of possession based upon the finding that the late November payment was the result of excusable neglect.
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