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3-Day Notice to Pay or Quit

Updated on Sat Aug 13 2022 |
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When to use a 3-Day Notice to Pay or Quit

There are three different Eviction Notices in Florida that a landlord can use, each having a different purpose. The 3-Day Notice to Pay or Quit on this page is used by landlords in Florida to formally demand the tenant to complete payment of past-due rent, or to vacate the property (thereby ending the lease). It does not waive the right of the landlord to collect past-due rent.

Landlords can click here prepare this eviction notice packet for free online.

Can the Tenant do Anything to Prevent Eviction After This Notice is Served?

Yes, the 3-Day Notice to Pay or Quit is considered "curable" because it allows the tenant to avoid eviction by paying the back rent within the specified amount of time.

However, in most cases the landlord is serving this notice because they no longer expect the tenant to pay rent unless forced to by the court (or because the landlord plans to begin an eviction court case against the tenant).

Usually, the landlord will serve this notice, wait three days, and if the tenant hasn't paid, then serve the 7-Day Notice to Quit which is not curable and terminates the lease, meaning the tenant can no longer avoid an eviction (but still is required to pay back rent).

When should a Florida landlord actually use a 3-Day Notice to Pay or Quit?

In general, most landlords will first give informal notice of overdue rent to a tenant by text message, email, or phone call. In the vast majority of lease agreements, this is sufficient for the tenant to want to pay the backrent without any disputes. Less frequently, a tenant will refuse to pay or indicate they will never pay. It is in these situations that a formal notice becomes necessary.

The reason a formal eviction notice is used is to be able to prove to a court later on that the tenant was actually notified about their obligation to move out, well in advance, in a manner that the court agrees is clear and unambiguous. These kind of laws were put in place to reduce landlord abuse of the process.

How to Serve the 3-Day Notice to Quit

Serving an eviction notice to a defendant is a formal process which may be used as evidence later in a court case. The form packet on this page contains a Proof of Service which can be filled out by whoever serves this notice. The proof of service should be retained by the landlord as it will need to be filed in court with the eviction court paperwork if a court case is started later.

Most landlords hire professional process servers or attorneys for this, but it is possible to get a friend or family member to do it and save money as long as you carefully follow the rules.

For more detailed instructions on how to serve an eviction notice, you can also read this Additional Reference for Eviction Information in Florida.

Retaining proof of service for the notice

However you choose to serve the notice, be sure to obtain and keep a proof of service in your records. A proof of service is a sworn affidavit from the server stating what was served, and how and when. The proof of service is your only way to prove to the court that you gave the other person notice of the lawsuit as required by law.

You should fill out and sign the proof of service right after the document is served and keep it in your records for future reference.

You can also ask the person you served to sign a statement confirming that you served the notice and how you served it, though, most people will refuse to sign this statement. The eviction notice template above includes a second page with a proof of service on it.

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