Florida back rent collection

Call me stupid or a sucker with a heart. Well I own a property with a friend that lives and is looking over a house in Port St Lucie, as i am in NY. The house was rented and the tenant lost his job a few months ago. Well my friend assured me that the guy was getting money to pay the rent and me being a nice person, I let it go for a few months. I had some personal issues to deal with and was under the assumption that he was on top of it. Well, as it turns put the tenant is now 4 and a half months behind, to the tune of over $7,500, and is moving out in a few weeks. Small claims is only up to $5,000 ...I need to find a way to collect from these people before they disappear. Should I file a lawsuit against them. What if they move out of state. Even if i dont get the money I want to do something ...any advise

I suggest you have them served with a small claims court case now for unpaid rent, before they leave. Then if they move out of state or disappear, you can continue with the court case against them. Once served, you win by default if they don't show in court. Have the judgement recorded in the courthouse for a small fee and it will appear on their credit report. If they later try to buy property, you can use the judgement to lien the property.

Since they owe more in rent than what you can claim under small claims limits, I suggest you only sue for back rent now. Later, after the place is empty, apply the deposit to any excess unpaid rent above the statutory limit. If there are damages beyond that, sue again for just the damages to the unit.

thank you I am going to start that now. Also Is there any recourse for me against the Real estate firm or agent that was supposed to be collecting the rent.

Did you have a contract with the firm or agent to manage the property for you? What agreement did you have with them to collect these rents and send them to you? Was anything in writing? Do they have a license to manage property for others (not required everywhere- check local laws to see if it is required there)? If you had something in writing, you may be able to take them to court to force them to show how they attempted to collect the rent. A PM usually must take certain steps when a tenant fails to pay rent - including notifying the owner, sending violation letters, serving a pay or quit notice, filing for eviction, etc. If you can show they didn't take reasnable steps to collect from the tenants - then you can show they were negligent in their duties and may sue.

My situation is very similar to the person who first posted. Only difference is my tenant has finally moved out. I was in process of putting together an agreement with tenant that he is responsible for paying me for all the back rent (4 months= $4,000) through a payment plan.
Ever since tenant moved out, he disappeared on me. The only way I beleive I can contact him is if i mail a letter to him to address he rented from, which will be forwarded to his new address (which I do not know what it is).

What are the steps I can take in order to file a suit against tenant for back rent even if he has already vacated the property?

Thanks!

Call the post office. There is a method to get their forwarding address (I think it is called address correction requested). You just send an envelope (it can be empty) with this notation on it. The post office will forward it and send you the forwarding address. It costs about $1 for this service. Then you will have the forwarding address for the tenant.

With the new address, you can send a bill, marked "Due Immediately", by certified mail, RRR, keeping a copy. You can file a small claims lawsuit against them and have them served at this address or their employer. Once you obtain a judgment, get it reocrded by the clerk (this puts it on their credit report) and proceed to garnish their wages.