Two Florida Realtors-backed bills – the rental housing bill (HB 1417) and local ordinance bill (SB 170) – clarify rental rules and ease some local regulations.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Gov. Ron DeSantis signed two of Florida Realtors® remaining legislative priorities into law on June 29: HB 1417 (Residential Tenancies) goes into effect on Saturday; SB 170 (Local Ordinances) goes into effect Oct. 1, 2023.
HB 1417
HB 1417 impacts local rental regulations. Faced with rising rental costs, a number of Florida cities passed landlord/tenant regulations that go beyond what is prescribed in state law.
While seemingly well-intentioned, many of these local rules exacerbate rental-cost problems over time. The policies cause a cooling effect among builders. Given a choice of metro areas with different rental regulations, builders often opt for the less regulated environments. That, in turn, slows the construction of affordable housing in cities that often need it most. Once builders leave an area, competition grows, rents move even higher, and the housing problem becomes even more challenging for those who can still afford to live there.
Under HB 1417, residential tenancies regulation will fall under state law. There will eventually no longer be a patchwork of local regulations that drive away builders and cause confusion between landlords and tenants.
HB 1417 also works in concert with the Live Local Act, which creates a wave of new affordable rental housing across Florida over the next 10 years. The Live Local Act pushed affordable housing development in all areas of the state that need it, but without HB 1417, builders would have remained uneasy about heavily regulated areas.
SB 170
SB 170 has the potential to help many local businesses, including vacation rental companies, fight back against harmful regulations causing them economic harm.
Local governments routinely pass ordinances that directly and indirectly impact local businesses, and many have unintended consequences. Under SB 170, local governments must show the impact of a new ordinance on businesses and suspend enforcement if an ordinance is challenged in court. The law gives businesses new tools to challenge unnecessary and burdensome regulations.
© 2023 Florida Realtors®
©Florida Realtors®
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