Tenant paid last month - can I evict for unpaid rent

[John Tatum]

I'm I'm having a very tough time finding an answer to this question. I'm in the state of Florida and I have a one year lease with a tenant who has paid first month, last month, and security. We are in the fifth month of the lease and the tenant is not able to pay the rent for this month. Can I still evict even though I'm holding last month's rent?  Or do I have to apply any prepaid rents before they become deliquent?  Thanks in advance.

[Nathan Gesner]

If the tenant signed a 12-month lease, the "last month's rent" belongs to the 11th month, not the 5th. I would file for eviction for non-payment of rent. Odds are, the tenant will leave. Once the lease is terminated, then you can apply the last month's rent to their last month of occupancy and use the security deposit for any other unpaid charges, cleaning, or repairs.