Rats and Mice in a Jacksonville Rental: Tenant and Landlord Rules

In most Jacksonville apartment buildings, getting rid of rats and mice is the landlord's job. Florida Statute 83.51(2)(a) says the landlord of a dwelling unit other than a single-family home or duplex must make reasonable provisions for the extermination of rats, mice, roaches, ants, wood-destroying organisms and bedbugs, unless the lease says otherwise in writing. Tenants have duties too, mainly keeping their unit clean and getting garbage out.

Rented houses and duplexes work differently, and the city's property maintenance code adds its own layer. This guide is general information, not legal advice. For a dispute, talk to a lawyer or a legal aid office such as Jacksonville Area Legal Aid.

What Statute 83.51 requires

Section 83.51 has two layers. Subsection (1) applies to every residential tenancy: the landlord must comply with applicable building, housing and health codes, and maintain the roof, windows, doors, floors, steps, porches, exterior walls and foundations.

Subsection (2)(a) adds duties for dwelling units other than a single-family home or duplex, unless otherwise agreed in writing. The landlord must make reasonable provisions for:

• Extermination of rats, mice, roaches, ants, wood-destroying organisms and bedbugs
• Locks and keys
• Clean and safe common areas
• Garbage removal and outside receptacles
• Heat during winter, running water and hot water

The roof, exterior walls and foundation in subsection (1) matter for rodents too. Most rodent entry points are gaps in exactly those parts of a building.

If you have to leave for treatment

Rodent work almost never requires anyone to move out. If a treatment does, the statute sets terms. The landlord must give 7 days' written notice, delivered in person, by mail or by email. A tenant can only be required to vacate for up to 4 days. The landlord isn't liable for damages but must abate the rent for that time.

What tenants owe under 83.52

Florida Statute 83.52 lists the tenant's side. A tenant must:

• Comply with obligations that building, housing and health codes place on tenants
• Keep the part of the premises they occupy and use clean and sanitary
• Remove all garbage from the unit in a clean and sanitary manner
• Keep plumbing fixtures clean, sanitary and in repair

That connects to 83.51(4), which says the landlord isn't responsible under that section for conditions created or caused by the negligent or wrongful act or omission of the tenant. Food left out and trash piling up give a landlord an argument. A clean unit with mice coming through a wall gap doesn't.

Jacksonville's property maintenance code

Inside the City of Jacksonville, Municipal Code Compliance enforces the Property Safety and Maintenance Code, Chapter 518 of the Ordinance Code. The division says it enforces minimum residential and commercial property standards, and that properties providing uncontrolled breeding places for pests are declared nuisances.

Because 83.51(1) requires landlords to comply with applicable housing codes, a city code violation can matter under state law too. Tenants can report conditions to 630-CITY (904-630-2489). The reporting guide covers what happens next.

If you live in Jacksonville Beach, Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach or Baldwin, or outside Duval County in Orange Park, Clay County or St. Johns County, your city or county has its own code enforcement office.

Rented houses and duplexes

The extermination duty in 83.51(2)(a) doesn't automatically apply to single-family homes and duplexes. For those rentals, the lease usually decides who handles pest control. Read it closely. Some leases put routine pest control on the tenant and repairs on the owner. Rodents can fall in between: setting traps may be the tenant's job under the lease, while sealing a soffit gap or a hole in the foundation is a repair.

The code layer still applies. The landlord must comply with applicable housing codes under 83.51(1), and must maintain the roof, exterior walls and foundation, which is where rodents usually get in.

Condos and townhomes

If you rent a condo or townhome unit, your landlord is the unit owner. Tell the owner in writing. The owner may need the association to deal with common areas, trash enclosures, roofs and shared walls. If you own and live in the unit, your association documents say what the association maintains. See apartment and multi-unit rodent control for how building-wide treatment works.

Steps for tenants

If you're seeing rats or mice in a rental, this order keeps your options open:

1. Take dated photos of droppings, gnaw marks and any rodents.
2. Tell the landlord or property manager in writing. Email works, and keep a copy.
3. Keep food in sealed containers and get garbage out on schedule.
4. Give access for inspections and treatment when asked.
5. If nothing happens in a reasonable time, report the conditions to 630-CITY, or your city's code office outside Jacksonville.
6. Talk to a lawyer or legal aid before withholding rent or ending a lease.

Ending a lease or withholding rent

Statute 83.56(1) lets a tenant terminate the rental agreement if the landlord materially fails to comply with 83.51(1) or material provisions of the lease, but only after the tenant delivers written notice specifying the noncompliance and the landlord fails to fix it within 7 days. If the failure is due to causes beyond the landlord's control and the landlord keeps making reasonable efforts, the statute provides rent relief instead: no rent while the unit is uninhabitable if the tenant moves out, or rent reduced in proportion to the loss of rental value if the tenant stays.

If a landlord files for possession and the tenant wants to raise the landlord's noncompliance as a defense, 83.56(5)(b) says the tenant must comply with section 83.60(2). If the tenant doesn't, the court must enter a default judgment for removal. That is a serious trap. Get legal advice before holding back any rent.

Steps for landlords

Respond to rodent reports in writing and quickly. Have the unit inspected, and if the source is outside the unit, look at the building: trash areas, roofline, crawl spaces and shared walls. Mice move between units, so treating one apartment in a building with several reports rarely holds. Keep the provider's reports. If housekeeping in a unit is part of the problem, document it and say so in writing too.

A written rodent inspection report gives you a dated list of findings and entry points, which helps if a code officer or court ever asks what you did.

Common questions

Related reading

• Reporting rats in Jacksonville
• Apartment and Multi-Unit Rodent Control
• Mice in the walls
• Mouse Control