Okaloosa County, FL Rental Property Rules: Just Cause Eviction (2026)

Section 83.425 of the Florida Statutes, titled "Preemption," is one unqualified sentence: "The regulation of residential tenancies, the landlord-tenant relationship, and all other matters covered under this part are preempted to the state." The Legislature added it in 2023 through ch. 2023-314, effective July 1, 2023, and its second sentence spells out exactly what that reaches: "This section supersedes any local government regulations on matters covered under this part, including, but not limited to, the screening process used by a landlord in approving tenancies; security deposits; rental agreement applications and fees associated with such applications; terms and conditions of rental agreements; the rights and responsibilities of the landlord and tenant; disclosures concerning the premises, the dwelling unit, the rental agreement, or the rights and responsibilities of the landlord and tenant; fees charged by the landlord; or notice requirements."

A "just cause" ordinance, one that would force a landlord to cite a qualifying reason (nonpayment, lease violation, owner move-in, and so on) before ending a month-to-month or expired lease, falls squarely inside "notice requirements" and "terms and conditions of rental agreements." Okaloosa County has no such ordinance and no authority to adopt one. Termination instead runs entirely on the grounds already set out in Part II of chapter 83: nonpayment of rent and lease violations under § 83.56, and termination of a tenancy without a specific term under § 83.57, which sets 7, 15, 30, and 60-day notice periods depending on how the tenancy is measured. A landlord in unincorporated Okaloosa County, Okaloosa Island included, follows those state notice periods and files in county court; no county board, hearing officer, or added local cause requirement sits between notice and eviction.