New Tenant’s Bill of Rights protects renters. Watch as Miami-Dade mayor celebrates it

Under pressure to provide relief from rising rents and scarce affordable housing, Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava on Wednesday held a ceremonial signing ceremony for the county’s new Tenant’s Bill of Rights legislation.

The ordinance that goes into effect on Friday will give Miami-Dade tenants new protections at a time when rents are surging, exacerbating a housing market that’s already one of the least affordable in the country.

READ MORE: What Miami-Dade County’s new Tenant Bill of Rights means for renters and landlords

Under the new law, a tenant can:

• Pay for neglected repairs on their rentals out of rent payments, provided notice is given to a landlord to address the issue and at least two estimates are obtained for the work.
• Apply for a rental without having to disclose past evictions. While landlords can still research eviction history, they can’t ask about prior evictions in rental applications.
• Expect notification about a new landlord. Landlords are required to notify a tenant about a rental’s change of ownership once the sale closes.

Levine Cava’s signature isn’t needed to enact the ordinance that passed the County Commission unanimously on May 3. The legislation will become law two days after the mayor’s ceremonial signing event.

Miami-Dade’s charter provides that ordinances take effect 10 days after commission passage, as long as the mayor doesn’t veto the legislation. For the Tenant’s Bill of Rights legislation, sponsored by commissioners Jean Monestime and Raquel Regalado, the required 10-day window closes on Friday.