Florida · StatutesFlorida real estate closing laws: a checklist for transaction coordinators

Florida's rules for a home sale are spread across several chapters of the Florida Statutes and the Real Estate Commission's rules. In the order a transaction meets them: escrow – a broker holding earnest money deposits it by the end of the third business day (FREC rule). Disclosures at or before the contract – the seller's flood disclosure (§689.302), the radon notice on at least one signed document (§404.056(5)), information on the option of an energy-efficiency rating (§553.996), the property tax disclosure summary (§689.261), and for new construction where the builder kept mineral rights, the subsurface rights summary (§689.29). Associations – the HOA disclosure summary before the contract with a 3-day right to void (§720.401), condo resale documents with a 7-business-day right to void (§718.503), and the estoppel certificate within 10 business days (§§720.30851, 718.116(8)), because the buyer becomes jointly liable for unpaid assessments (§720.3085(2)(b)). Buyer – the SB 264 affidavit at purchase (§692.204(6)). Documents – a deed signed before two witnesses with the names and addresses the recorder requires (§§689.01, 695.26); a power of attorney signed before two witnesses and a notary (§709.2105). Money – deed documentary stamps of 70 cents per $100 (§201.02), and on a financed purchase mortgage stamps of 35 cents per $100 plus the 0.2% intangible tax (§§201.08, 199.133). The seller's mortgage – an estoppel letter within 10 days of a written request and a recorded release within 60 days after payoff (§701.04). Rentals – deposits and advance rent transfer to the buyer with an accounting (§83.49(7)). After closing, a buyer moving from another Florida homestead can file for portability of up to $500,000 of the Save Our Homes difference (§193.155(8)).