How to Evict a Tenant in Orlando: The Step-by-Step Process
The Orange County eviction process from 3-day notice to writ of possession. Filing fee is $185, timeline runs 3-6 weeks uncontested. Full step-by-step.
Your tenant is two months behind. You've sent texts, left voicemails, taped a note to the door. Now you're thinking about changing the locks yourself.
Don't. In Florida, only a judge can order a tenant removed — and only the Orange County Sheriff can carry it out. Changing locks, shutting off water, or hauling their stuff to the curb is illegal under Florida Statute 83.67. Do it and your tenant can sue you for up to three months' rent in damages, plus their attorney fees. Even if they owe you $6,000. The legal route takes 3–6 weeks for an uncontested case. Filing fee is $185. It's not fast, but it's the only way that holds up.
What notice do I serve before filing eviction in Orange County?
Before you file anything with the court, you've got to serve written notice. Florida Statute 83.56 spells out the notice types. Which one you use depends on why you're evicting — and picking the wrong one gets your case dismissed before it starts.
3-day notice (non-payment of rent). Your tenant has 3 business days — not calendar days — to pay the full rent owed or vacate. Weekends and legal holidays don't count. Here's where landlords mess up: the notice must demand rent only. No late fees, no utility pass-throughs, no nothing beyond base rent. Adding a $50 late fee to a $1,800 rent demand makes the entire notice defective. That means starting over. Use the Orange County Clerk's eviction forms or have an attorney draft it.
7-day notice (curable violation). For lease violations your tenant can fix — unauthorized pet, noise complaints, parking where they shouldn't, too many occupants. They get 7 days to cure the problem. If they fix it, the notice dies. You can't file.
7-day notice (incurable violation). Serious stuff: intentional property damage, illegal activity on the premises, or the same curable violation happening again within 12 months. No cure period. Seven days to vacate, period.
30-day notice (month-to-month, no cause). This one changed. Florida Statute 83.57 was amended in July 2023 — the notice requirement went from 15 days to 30 days before the end of any monthly period. Both landlords and tenants must give 30 days now. You don't need a reason. If your tenant has a fixed-term lease, though, you wait for expiration or use a cause-based notice above.
Electronic notice (HB 615, effective July 2025). Florida now allows notice delivery via email, but only if both parties sign a separate written addendum to the lease. The addendum has to say the election is voluntary and can be revoked anytime. Email counts as served when sent. No addendum? Stick to traditional delivery.
How do I serve an eviction notice in Orlando?
Bad service kills more eviction cases than bad tenants do. Florida law gives you three methods: hand it to the tenant directly, leave it with someone else at the property, or post it on the door and mail a copy.
The Orange County Sheriff serves 3-day notices for $40 per person. Private process servers run $50–$100 and hand you a sworn affidavit of service — that's your proof if the tenant claims they never got it. Hand delivery works too, especially with a timestamped photo of the posted notice as backup. Cheapest option, and the hardest for the tenant to argue against.
One thing that trips people up: don't count the day of service as day one. Day one is the first full business day after service. Serve on Wednesday, the clock starts Thursday. Day two is Friday. Day three is Monday. Your tenant has until end of business Monday to pay or vacate. If you're screening tenants properly upfront, you won't end up here as often — but when you do, the counting matters.
How do I file for eviction in Orange County Court?
The notice period expired. Your tenant didn't pay, didn't cure, didn't leave. Time to file. The filing fee is $185 plus $10 per defendant for summons. Here's what the process looks like:
- Prepare the complaint. Get eviction form packets from the Orange County Clerk (Room 350) or any branch location. You need the complaint form, summons, a copy of the lease, the expired notice, and proof of service.
- File with the court. Walk it in to the Orange County Courthouse — 425 N. Orange Ave., Orlando, FL 32801 (Room 350, Civil Division) — or try the branch locations in Apopka or Winter Park if the downtown line is long. E-filing through MyFlCourtAccess.com is the fastest route. Pay the $185 filing fee plus $10 per summons.
- Clerk issues summons. The Clerk processes your complaint and issues a summons for each tenant named in the case.
- Serve the tenant. The Orange County Sheriff ($40/person) or a private process server delivers the summons and complaint. Usually 2–5 days, depending on whether the tenant's around.
- Tenant has 5 business days to respond. If they don't file a written answer with the court, you move to step 6.
- File motion for default. No answer in 5 business days? File a Motion for Default with the Clerk. After default is entered, request final judgment.
- Judge enters final judgment. If the tenant contests, a hearing gets scheduled — usually 2–4 weeks out on Orange County's eviction docket. If they don't contest, the court enters judgment in your favor.
- Writ of possession. Request the writ from the Clerk ($90). The Orange County Sheriff posts a 24-hour notice on the property — Sundays don't count — then shows up and executes the lockout.
Filing without a lawyer? The Clerk's Self Help Center (Room 340) offers form assistance and attorney consultations at $1/minute. Not a bad deal for quick guidance. Phone: (407) 836-2000.
How long does eviction take in Orange County?
If your tenant doesn't fight it and your paperwork is clean — 3–6 weeks, sometimes as fast as 3–4. Here's where that time goes:
- Notice period: 3–30 days (depends on notice type)
- Filing + summons issuance: 1–3 days
- Serving the tenant: 2–5 days
- Tenant response window: 5 business days
- Default entry + final judgment: 5–10 days
- Writ + sheriff lockout: 1–5 days
Contested cases are a different story. If the tenant files an answer, raises habitability defenses, or just wants a hearing, you're on Orange County's eviction docket — hearings typically get scheduled 2–4 weeks out. Court backlogs get worse in late summer and right after the holidays. For non-payment cases where the tenant contests, they're required to deposit rent into the court registry or they lose most of their defenses. That requirement alone filters out a lot of frivolous answers.
We wrote a full breakdown of timing in our Orange County eviction timeline guide — it covers what causes delays and when court dockets move fastest.
How much does an eviction cost in Orange County?
Here's the math most landlords don't do until they're already in it. A non-payment eviction in Orange County runs $1,000–$1,400 when you add up filing fees, service, and a flat-fee attorney:
| Cost Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Court filing fee | $185 |
| Summons per defendant | $10 |
| Sheriff service (3-day notice) | $40/person |
| Sheriff service (summons) | $40/person |
| Writ of possession | $90 |
| Attorney — uncontested flat fee | $500–$1,400 |
| Private process server (alternative) | $50–$100/person |
But that's just the legal tab. The real cost is the rent you're not collecting while all this plays out. Orlando's median rent is around $1,900/month. A contested eviction that drags on for 2–3 months means you're out $3,800–$5,700 in lost income on top of $2,000–$3,500 in attorney fees. One bad tenant can easily run $7,000+ from the day they stop paying to the day you get a new lease signed.
That's why tenant screening isn't something you do casually. It's the difference between a $7,000 problem and a tenant who pays on the 1st every month for three years.
Should I try cash for keys before filing in Orlando?
Sometimes the courthouse isn't the fastest route back to a rent-paying unit. An uncontested eviction costs $1,000–$1,400 and takes 3–6 weeks. A cash-for-keys deal — where you pay the tenant $1,000–$2,000 to leave voluntarily — can have them out in 7–14 days. No filing fees, no sheriff, and less chance of coming back to holes punched in the drywall.
If you go this route: get everything in writing. Move-out date, what condition you expect the place in, how much you're paying and when. The payment goes only after they've returned the keys and you've walked the unit. Cash for keys feels wrong to a lot of landlords — like you're paying someone to stop breaking their lease. But sometimes the math is clear: $1,500 upfront saves you $5,000 and six weeks of lost rent.
What mistakes get eviction cases dismissed in Orlando?
We've seen all of these in Orange County. Every single one is avoidable, and every single one costs time and money you don't get back.
Self-help eviction. Changing locks, shutting off the water, dragging their stuff to the curb. All illegal under FL 83.67. And here's what makes it sting: a tenant you locked out illegally can sue you for up to three months' rent in damages plus their attorney fees — even if they owed you months of back rent. You end up paying them.
Defective 3-day notice. Wrong tenant name. Late fees included in the rent demand. Miscounted days. Bad service. The 3-day notice is the foundation of your whole case. Get one detail wrong and the judge tosses it. You start over — another 3-day wait, another $185 filing fee, another month watching rent not come in.
Accepting rent after filing. Once you've filed the eviction complaint, stop taking money from the tenant. Accepting full past-due rent waives your right to proceed under FL 83.202. Even partial payments are risky — if money shows up, deposit it into the court registry, not your bank account.
Miscounting the 3-day window. Weekends don't count. Holidays don't count. And the day you serve the notice doesn't count. Friday service means Monday is day one, not day three. Get the count wrong and you've filed early — instant dismissal.
Filing too early. Submitting the complaint before the notice period has actually expired. Even one day early. The court doesn't care that your tenant owes you $4,200 — the statute says wait, and you have to wait.
Can I handle an Orlando eviction without a lawyer?
Florida lets landlords file pro se — meaning without an attorney. The Orange County Clerk's office sells form packets, and the Self Help Center (Room 340) has attorneys available at $1/minute for quick questions. Not a bad option if you just need someone to look over your paperwork.
For a clean non-payment case where the tenant ghosts and never files an answer, you can do it yourself for $185 plus service costs. But if the tenant pushes back — files an answer, raises defenses, shows up with a lawyer — hire one. A $500–$1,400 flat fee for an uncontested eviction is a lot cheaper than a dismissed case that puts you back at square one. Orange County saw over 11,500 eviction filings in 2025. The landlords who got through it clean weren't necessarily smarter — they just had their paperwork right from day one.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does an eviction take in Orange County?
Uncontested, 3–6 weeks from notice to sheriff lockout. If the tenant files an answer or raises defenses, you're looking at 2–3 months. Orange County's eviction docket schedules hearings 2–4 weeks from filing, so that alone can double your timeline.
How much does it cost to file an eviction in Orange County?
Court filing fee is $185 plus $10 per defendant for summons. Add $40–$100 for service and $90 for the writ of possession. With a flat-fee attorney, total runs $1,000–$1,400 for an uncontested case. Contested? That number climbs fast.
What is a 3-day notice in Florida?
It's the formal demand for rent payment — 3 business days to pay or vacate. Only base rent can go on it. No late fees, no utilities, no pet deposits. If the tenant pays within the 3-day window, the notice is dead and you can't file.
Can I evict a month-to-month tenant in Orlando without cause?
Yes. Florida Statute 83.57 requires 30 days' written notice before the end of a monthly period. That number went up from 15 days in July 2023. No reason needed — just the notice and proper timing.
Can I change the locks to evict a tenant in Florida?
No. That's a self-help eviction, and it's illegal under Florida Statute 83.67. Changing locks, turning off utilities, removing belongings — any of it can land you in court, owing the tenant up to three months' rent plus their lawyer's bill.
Where do I file an eviction in Orange County?
Orange County Courthouse, 425 N. Orange Ave., Orlando, FL 32801, Room 350. Branch locations in Apopka and Winter Park handle eviction filings too. You can also e-file at MyFlCourtAccess.com. The Self Help Center is in Room 340 if you need form assistance.
What happens if a tenant contests the eviction?
They've got 5 business days after being served to file a written answer. In non-payment cases, they also have to deposit rent into the court registry — if they don't, they lose most of their defenses. The court sets a hearing, usually 2–4 weeks out. From there it's 2–3 months total.
The best eviction is the one you never have to file. Solid tenant screening, clear lease terms, and picking up the phone early when rent is late — that prevents most of the situations that end up in front of a judge. If you own rental property in Orange County and want help managing it or just want someone else to deal with the eviction process, our Orlando property management team handles this across the metro.
