Skip to content
Oakclause

Tenant Abandoned Property Laws in Florida

In Florida, a landlord must give written notice of property left after a tenant vacates, with a claim date at least 10 days after personal delivery (15 days if mailed); unclaimed property is sold at public sale unless worth less than $500, in which case the landlord may keep or dispose of it.

Last checked . General information, not legal advice.

Florida at a glance

Written notice required
Yes, written notice
Holding period
10 days (15 if mailed)
The claim date must be at least 10 days after personal delivery of the notice or 15 days after mailing.
After the holding period
Public sale; keep or dispose if under $500
Money left after storage, advertising and sale costs is paid to the county, where it can be claimed within 1 year.

Sources

Last checked

The rules in Florida

Does a landlord in Florida have to notify the tenant before disposing of left-behind property?

Yes, written notice. Written notice required in Florida: yes, written notice.

How long must a landlord in Florida keep a tenant's abandoned property?

Holding period in Florida: 10 days (15 if mailed). The claim date must be at least 10 days after personal delivery of the notice or 15 days after mailing.

What can a landlord in Florida do with abandoned property after the waiting period?

After the holding period in Florida: Public sale; keep or dispose if under $500. Money left after storage, advertising and sale costs is paid to the county, where it can be claimed within 1 year.

Where do the Florida tenant abandoned property laws come from?

The rules above come from Fla. Stat. 715.104 and Fla. Stat. 715.109. Each source is linked on this page. We last checked them in October 2026.

Good to know

The rule applies when the premises are vacated through eviction or otherwise.

What this means in practice

Before treating anything as abandoned, confirm that the tenancy has actually ended. Some statutes define when a unit counts as abandoned, and removing property while a tenant still has a right to possession can expose a landlord to claims for wrongful eviction or conversion.

Keep a written record. Photos or a video of the items, a dated inventory, a copy of any notice sent and proof of how it was delivered make it much easier to show that the required steps were followed if the former tenant later asks for the property or its value.

Store items safely and in a reasonable way during any holding period. Where a statute allows the landlord to charge reasonable moving and storage costs, or to keep sale proceeds to cover those costs, the rules on what may be charged and what happens to any surplus vary, so check the exact text for your state.

General information, not legal advice. Laws change, and cities can add their own rules, so check the current statute before you rely on it.