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  In economically troubled times, renters and tenants may wonder: What if my landlord gets foreclosed on? What are the laws protecting tenants when this occurs? The state of Florida has a number of laws in place to help those in this situation. If you're afraid your landlord may be behind on his mortgage, contact a real estate lawyer for professional legal advice.
  
  

Leases

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  One of the most important things to know when facing a landlord's foreclosure is what will happen to your lease. Thanks to the Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act of 2009, leases on foreclosed buildings are usually not subject to termination. This means that if, for example, you're in month 4 of a 12-month lease, you can live out the remaining 8 months in the residence. The exception to this rule is if the building's new owner wishes to occupy the building. In that case, tenants are given 90 days' notice to vacate the property.
  
  

Informing Yourself

• Renting a residence in foreclosure is difficult, but even more so if you only find out when a notice is posted on the door. If you suspect your landlord is behind on his mortgage payments, or even if you just want to make sure he's not, you can use the website rentalforeclosure.com/ to find this information using the property address. A less convenient, but more reliable, way to check on this is through the court file. Because Florida is a judicial foreclosure state, information pertaining to the foreclosure will be on record. Because obtaining the information in this way can be difficult, it is best to consult an attorney to assist with the process.
  
  

Security Deposit

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  Often a tenant will find herself facing a landlord who either will not or cannot repay a security deposit after a foreclosure. Under Florida law, the deposit is still the right of the tenant, and there are means of getting it back. Usually this will mean filing a case in small claims court. This is easy to do at your county courthouse. (It doesn't matter where your landlord lives; the case should be filed in the county of the rented property.) In Florida, it is necessary to attend a pretrial hearing to try to come to some sort of agreement. Only if no agreement is found will there be a trial.