The tenant has five days (exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays and holidays) after service of the summons to file any defenses. When depositing rent funds with the Clerk and Comptroller's office, the deposit must be in cash, money order, cashier's check, or a check drawn on an attorney's trust account.
Fees
Clerk and Comptroller fees apply to the deposited amount, and are calculated at 3% for the first $500 and 1.5% for the remaining amount. Clerk and Comptroller fees may be paid by cash, money order, cashier's check, personal check (photo identification is required), or credit card.
Please note that credit card transactions are subject to a 3.5% non-refundable fee accessed by a third party payment processor (
My Florida County website). If an Answer is filed, the landlord must contact the Court to schedule a hearing. Once scheduled, a
Notice of Hearing must be provided to the tenant and filed with the Clerk and Comptroller.