Witnessing Lease Agreements: What Did, and Did Not, Change

Prior to July 1, 2020, some landlords and tenants did not realize their lease agreement contained a minor defect which undermined the enforceability, in whole or in part of the lease agreement itself. Leases for a term of more than one year were distinguished under Florida law and an interest in real estate for a term of years and Section 689.01(a) of the Florida Statutes required two witnesses for the lease to be valid. When Governor DeSantis signed HB469 on June 27, 2020, the witness requirement for leases was removed from Section 689.01, meaning that, moving forward, leases, regardless of the length of the term, or their character as residential or commercial are effective with the signature of both parties, even if there are no witnesses to the document.