Rental Property Rules in St. Petersburg, FL (2026)
2 verified rental property rules for St. Petersburg, Florida, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Rent Control
St. Petersburg has no rent control ordinance. Florida preempts all local rent control under Fla. Stat. Sec. 125.0103, and the 2023 Live Local Act (SB 102) eliminated the housing-emergency exception. HB 1417 (Fla. Stat. Sec. 166.0444) further preempted local tenant-protection ordinances. St. Petersburg cannot adopt rent stabilization, rent caps, or any local limit on rent increases. Landlords set rent and increases by lease contract subject only to state notice rules.
St. Petersburg Rent Control
Few RestrictionsFla. Stat. § 166.043(2)
A municipality, county, or other entity of local government may not adopt or maintain in effect any law, ordinance, rule, or other measure that would have the effect of imposing controls on rents.
Repairs & Habitability
City Code § 8-203 bars a St. Petersburg landlord from letting or re-letting a rental unit once a Codes Investigator, Fire Official, or POD designee has served notice of a code violation, until the violation is fixed and verified by a follow-up inspection. Owners also cannot retaliate against a tenant for allowing that inspection to happen.
St. Petersburg Rental Habitability Enforcement
Significant RestrictionsSt. Petersburg City Code § 8-203
(a)The owner of a rental unit who has been given notice of violation of one or more of the requirements of this article shall have the following affirmative duties:(1)The owner shall not interfere with the rights of the tenant of the rental unit due to the tenant's having permitted a Codes Investigator, Fire Official, or other designee of the POD to inspect the rental unit, or to inspect any co...
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County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement St. Petersburg city rules.
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