Florida Construction Law

Although you cannot lien public property, if a government owner leases property to a private tenant, you can lien the leasehold interest of the tenant. Trenton H. Cotney Board Certified in Construction Law Trent Cotney, P.A. 1207 N Franklin St, Ste 222 Tampa, FL 33602 (813) 579-3278 www.trentcotney.com

This bill which passed the regular session states that a lessor's interest in property is not subject to a construction lien made by a tenant if certain documents containing specific information and meeting certain criteria are recorded in the county where work is performed before the recording of a notice of commencement. This bill overrides Everglades Electric Supply, Inc. v. Paraiso Granite, LLC , 28 So. 3d 235 (Fla. 3 rd DCA 2010) and authorizes certain lienors to demand that a landlord serve verified copies of a lease prohibiting liability for improvements made by a tenant.  Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified in Construction Law Glenn Rasmussen Fogarty & Hooker, P.A. 100 S. Ashley Dr., Suite 1300 Tampa, FL 33602 (813) 229-3333 http://www.glennrasmussen.com

Section 83.60, Florida Statutes provides that a tenant must provide written notice no later than 7 days prior to withholding rent on the basis of a material non-compliance with the lease agreement.  Construction defects fall within this category.  Accordingly, if a landlord has a tenant that refuses to pay rent because of alleged construction deficiencies, Section 83.60 requires that tenant to tender written notice of the defects prior to withholding rent.  Failure to provide the notice results in the tenant being unable to use non-compliance as a defense to possession of the premises by the evicting landlord. Trenton H. Cotney Florida Bar Certified in Construction Law Glenn Rasmussen Fogarty & Hooker, P.A. 100 S. Ashley Dr., Suite 1300 Tampa, FL 33602 (813) 229-3333 http://www.glennrasmussen.com

14th & Heinberg v. Terhaar and Cronley , 35 Fla. L. Weekly D2001b (September 7, 2010): Tenant’s contractor, while prohibited from obtaining a construction lien against the landlord’s property interest due to terms of lease, which did not require tenant to make improvements that “did not constitute the pith of the lease,” was allowed to obtain a judgment against the landlord on the basis of “unjust enrichment” as measured by the unpaid costs of the improvements (but not for the “enhanced value” of the subsequent rental to another tenant of increased rental amount). Trenton H. Cotney Board Certified in Construction Law Trent Cotney, P.A. 1207 N Franklin St, Ste 222 Tampa, FL 33602 (813) 579-3278 www.trentcotney.com