Jesse Scheckner
Later this year, landlords will have to start giving prospective tenants advance notice that their dwellings could flood from time to time.
The disclosure is already required in certain property sales, but not in residential rental agreements.
That changes Oct. 1 under legislation (SB 948) Gov. Ron DeSantis signed.
Lawmakers voted unanimously in April for the measure, which will compel landlords to provide flood risk disclosures to renters before or when they sign a lease agreement of one year or longer.
If a landlord does not do so and a tenant suffers a substantial loss of personal property due to flooding — where “substantial loss” means that the total cost to repair or replace the property is 50% or more of the property’s market value — the tenant could terminate the agreement by writing within 30 days, and the landlord would have to refund all prepaid rent and/or deposits.
The bill also creates a flood disclosure requirement that condo developers would have to provide to buyers.
“This would give tenants the information they need to assess their risk before they make decisions about where to live and also whether or not to obtain flood insurance,” said Fleming Island Republican Sen. Jennifer Bradley, the bill’s sponsor, ahead of the Senate floor vote.
Parkland Democratic Rep. Christine Hunschofsky, who is slated to lead House Democrats in 2026, carried the bill’s House analog (HB 1015).
“This is important for many reasons. But I think one of the most important parts of this is there’s a disclaimer in there to let people know that flood insurance is not usually part of property insurance, so that purchasers and people who are renting apartments are aware of that,” Hunschofsky said before the House floor vote.
SB 948 builds on legislation Bradley and Hunschosfsky successfully sponsored last year to mandate flood risk disclosures in property sales.
The required information today includes whether any insurance claims involving flooding have been filed and if federal assistance was ever given due to flooding.
Before the change, property owners and real estate agents didn’t have to share such information with buyers.
Flooding is one of Florida’s most frequent hazards, according to the Division of Emergency Management, which describes it as a “coast to coast threat that can occur at any time of the year.”
The Florida Association of Realtors, Community Associations Institute and Audubon Florida, among others, backed SB 948.
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Jacob Ogles of Florida Politics contributed to this report.
