What should a landlord tell tenants when the property is sold or management changes, and where to send rent?

What the law asks for

Florida Statute 83.50 is a clear example. The landlord or an authorized agent must disclose in writing, at or before the start of the tenancy, the name and address of the landlord or of the person authorized to receive notices and demands. That person keeps the authority until the tenant is told otherwise, and notices about those names and addresses, or changes to them, go to the tenant's residence, to another address the tenant specifies in writing, or by email under section 83.505.

Other states have similar disclosure rules, and many have rules for what a new owner must do with the deposit. Read our post on deposits when a building is sold and your state's statute.

What the notice should say

1. The date the change takes effect, and who is the new landlord or manager, with name, mailing address and phone or email.
2. Where and how to pay rent from that date, and where to pay up to that date.
3. Who handles repairs and emergencies, and the after hours number.
4. Where the security deposit is held and who is now responsible for it.
5. That the lease stays the same, if it does, with the end date.
6. How a tenant can check the notice is real, such as a phone number they can call that is already on file.

Example a made-up building sells on the 15th. Rent for the month was due on the 1st, so the notice says "rent for this month stays with the old owner; from the 1st of next month, pay to the account below." That one sentence avoids a month where the old owner and new owner both think they are owed.

Why scam protection belongs in the notice

A sale is the moment a scammer likes best: a "new owner" sends an email asking tenants to pay a different account. Tell tenants that any change in how to pay will come with a letter from the address on file and a call from a known number, and that they should never change where they send rent because of an email alone. Read our post on rent redirection scams for what to say.

Handing off the money side

• Close the month for the old owner: apply all rent received, record deposits held and transfer a ledger for each tenant.
• Move the deposits as your state requires, and give each tenant the deposit statement.
• Pass the lease, the move in condition report, open work orders and vendor contacts to the new owner or manager.
• Forward any rent that arrives at the old address or account, and tell tenants the old route will close.

How DoorKeeping handles it

DoorKeeping emails tenants from one place, so the notice goes to every tenant at once with a copy saved on each record. Each property has its own books, so the handoff package for a sold property is its own ledger, deposits held and open work orders. Because rent always goes to the owner's own bank, a change of owner means a new bank account in the lease and memo, not a change in how DoorKeeping works. The email waits for your one-tap approval before it goes.

Sources

1. Florida Statutes 83.50: Disclosure of landlord's address (2025), read Oct 30, 2026

Questions

Do I have to tell tenants in writing?

Many states require written disclosure of the landlord's name and address and of changes to them. Florida's 83.50 is one example. Check yours.

Who gets the rent for the month of the sale?

Whatever the sale contract says. State it in the tenant notice so tenants know where to pay.

How do I stop a fake notice from a scammer?

Tell tenants how real changes are sent, and tell them never to change where they pay on the strength of an email alone.