My landlord entered my apartment on on Friday October 16 "claiming" an emergency. Then took pictures of my entire apartment. She left a note saying I had to (it was messy and I smoked. I did not know it was in the lease) and return the property to the condition she rented it to me in. The letter also states she was coming to inspect on Sunday October 18. I did not let her in, mostly because she has been very intrusive since I moved here and I wanted legal advice. She left a notice titled "7 days to cure" which states I must move in 7 days. I filed my answer with the county clerk. The hearing was today. I stated in court I would not smoke in the apartment anymore. The judge ruled in her favor reason being that my smoking in the apartment was incurable. How can this happen? I did not cause willful destruction or damage to the rental unit or repeatedly violate the lease after being told to fix the violation as it states in the florida statute. I really do not want this on my record and it feels unjustifiable. Please help!
Its YOUR responsibility to READ your lease and understand what it says.
Most people read the lease before they sign the lease.
Sorry, nothing you can do now, but appeal the eviction, if you have a few thousand dollars lying around.
You can file a notice of appeal at the court(court clerk's office) that rendered the judgment.
You must provide copies of documentation to support why you think the eviction was unjust.
You will have to hire a process server to serve your landlord(the court clerk will help you to find a server if you do not have one).
Pay a surety bond, normally an eviction appeal requires you to pay such a bond.
The amount is fixed at the discretion of the judge.
You must also file a motion for a stay of enforcement if the hearing date is beyond the date of eviction is scheduled to occur.
Then you must continue to pay your rent, unless your landlord refuses to accept it.
In the latter instance, you must place the entire rent amount into an escrow account.
Finally, during the appeals process UNLESS a stay (is requested and granted) you might have to vacate the apartment, anyway.
Bottom line, an appeal isn't easy, is rarely successful, and not the place anyone wants to be!!!!