Fort Lauderdale, FL Short-Term Rentals: Repeat Violator Strikes (2026)

Fort Lauderdale escalates penalties against repeat vacation-rental offenders through Code Sec. 15-282(d), which layers suspension on top of the standard civil fines of $250 for an uncontested first violation and $325 for a contested one. A special magistrate, not the city manager, holds the suspension power once a property accumulates violations: the third violation of the vacation rental article shuts down the certificate of compliance for 180 calendar days, the fourth for 365 calendar days, and each additional violation tacks on another 30 days indefinitely, so a fifth violation runs 395 days and a sixth runs 415 days.

Separately, a certificate faces automatic temporary suspension five working days after a citation for a Florida Building Code or Florida Fire Prevention Code violation, and that suspension stays in effect until the city reinspects and confirms the violation is cleared. Suspension begins at the end of the current lease period or within 30 calendar days, whichever comes first, unless the magistrate sets another date. An owner can still file for renewal during a suspension, but no new certificate of compliance issues until the suspension period runs out.

Each day a violation exists counts as a separate offense under Sec. 15-282(b)(2), except that occupancy violations under Sec. 15-278(2) count as one violation per rental period.