HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 1 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S A bill to be entitled 1 An act relating to judicial sales procedures; amending 2 s. 45.031, F.S.; specifying that courts must follow 3 certain provisions when ordering the sale of real or 4 personal property unless the use of other specified 5 procedures is ordered; creating s. 45.0311, F.S.; 6 providing a short title; prohibiting a court from 7 allowing the use of bidding credits or certain other 8 offsets in specified judicial sales or foreclosure 9 sales; requiring the winning bidder to remit the full 10 purchase price within a specified timefram e; requiring 11 that the sale be voided and the property reauctioned 12 under certain circumstances; prohibiting specified 13 persons and entities from bidding on properties in 14 certain sales; requiring that a property be 15 reauctioned if the property does not sell fo r a 16 specified percentage of the recent assessed property 17 value; requiring that specified sales be held at 18 locations that are open and available to the public; 19 providing construction; prohibiting the courts from 20 allowing certain sales of property unless spe cified 21 rules and provisions are followed; prohibiting the 22 courts from issuing certain orders for the judicial 23 sale or foreclosure sale of property; providing that 24 specified sales of property are void and the property 25 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 2 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S must be reauctioned if certain conditio ns are met; 26 creating s. 45.036, F.S.; authorizing courts to order 27 an alternate judicial sales procedure under specified 28 conditions; requiring that such procedure follow 29 specified notice provisions; requiring that the person 30 conducting a sale hold a specifi ed license unless he 31 or she is a clerk of the court; prohibiting parties to 32 the sale action and their attorneys from conducting 33 such sale; prohibiting the person conducting the sale 34 from directly or indirectly bidding on the property or 35 profiting from the sale, except for receiving a 36 certain fee; prohibiting an alternate judicial sales 37 procedure from authorizing specified preferences or 38 advantages; requiring that funds be held in an escrow 39 or trust account unless the clerk of the court holds 40 those funds; authorizing the court to audit such 41 accounts and issue certain orders; providing that the 42 clerk of the court is entitled to a specified service 43 charge; prohibiting the court from waiving such 44 charge; requiring the person who conducted the sale to 45 file a specified certificate of sale and provide 46 service of such certificate to specified parties; 47 requiring the clerk of the court to file a specified 48 certificate of title and provide service of such 49 certificate to specified parties; prohibiting courts 50 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 3 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S from waiving requirements related to a foreclosure 51 surplus; requiring certain persons to file a specified 52 certificate of disbursement; providing an effective 53 date. 54 55 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 56 57 Section 1. Section 45.031, Florida St atutes, is amended to 58 read: 59 45.031 Judicial sales procedure. —In any sale of real or 60 personal property under an order or judgment, the procedures 61 provided in this section and ss. 45.0315 -45.035 must may be 62 followed unless the court orders use of the alter nate judicial 63 sales procedure in s. 45.036 or other procedures expressly 64 provided by law as an alternative to any other sale procedure if 65 so ordered by the court . 66 (1) FINAL JUDGMENT. — 67 (a) In the order or final judgment, the court shall direct 68 the clerk to sell the property at public sale on a specified day 69 that shall be not less than 20 days or more than 35 days after 70 the date thereof, on terms and conditions specified in the order 71 or judgment. A sale may be held more than 35 days after the date 72 of final judgment or order if the plaintiff or plaintiff's 73 attorney consents to such time. The final judgment shall contain 74 the following statement in conspicuous type: 75 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 4 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S 76 IF THIS PROPERTY IS SOLD AT PUBLIC AUCTION, THERE MAY BE 77 ADDITIONAL MONEY FROM THE SALE AFTER PAYMENT OF PERSONS WHO ARE 78 ENTITLED TO BE PAID FROM THE SALE PROCEEDS PURSUANT TO THIS 79 FINAL JUDGMENT. 80 81 IF YOU ARE A SUBORDINATE LIENHOLDER CLAIMING A RIGHT TO FUNDS 82 REMAINING AFTER THE SALE, IF ANY, YOU MUST FILE A CLAIM WITH THE 83 CLERK NO LATER THAN THE DATE THAT THE CLERK REPORTS THE FUNDS AS 84 UNCLAIMED. IF YOU FAIL TO FILE A TIMELY CLAIM, YOU WILL NOT BE 85 ENTITLED TO ANY REMAINING FUNDS. 86 (b) If the property being foreclosed on has qualified for 87 the homestead tax exemption in the most recent approved tax 88 roll, the final judgment shall additionally contain the 89 following statement in conspicuous type: 90 91 IF YOU ARE THE PROPERTY OWNER, YOU MAY CLAIM THESE FUNDS 92 YOURSELF. YOU ARE NOT REQUIRED TO HAVE A LAWYER OR ANY OTHER 93 REPRESENTATION AND YOU DO NOT HAVE TO A SSIGN YOUR RIGHTS TO 94 ANYONE ELSE IN ORDER FOR YOU TO CLAIM ANY MONEY TO WHICH YOU ARE 95 ENTITLED. PLEASE CHECK WITH THE CLERK OF THE COURT, ...(INSERT 96 INFORMATION FOR APPLICABLE COURT)... WITHIN TEN (10) DAYS AFTER 97 THE SALE TO SEE IF THERE IS ADDITIONAL MONE Y FROM THE 98 FORECLOSURE SALE THAT THE CLERK HAS IN THE REGISTRY OF THE 99 COURT. 100 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 5 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S 101 IF YOU DECIDE TO SELL YOUR HOME OR HIRE SOMEONE TO HELP YOU 102 CLAIM THE ADDITIONAL MONEY, YOU SHOULD READ VERY CAREFULLY ALL 103 PAPERS YOU ARE REQUIRED TO SIGN, ASK SOMEONE ELSE, PREFERABLY AN 104 ATTORNEY WHO IS NOT RELATED TO THE PERSON OFFERING TO HELP YOU, 105 TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU ARE SIGNING AND THAT 106 YOU ARE NOT TRANSFERRING YOUR PROPERTY OR THE EQUITY IN YOUR 107 PROPERTY WITHOUT THE PROPER INFORMATION. IF YOU CANNOT AFFORD TO 108 PAY AN ATTORNEY, YOU MAY CONTACT ...(INSERT LOCAL OR NEAREST 109 LEGAL AID OFFICE AND TELEPHONE NUMBER)... TO SEE IF YOU QUALIFY 110 FINANCIALLY FOR THEIR SERVICES. IF THEY CANNOT ASSIST YOU, THEY 111 MAY BE ABLE TO REFER YOU TO A LOCAL BAR REFERRAL AGENCY OR 112 SUGGEST OTHER OPTIONS. IF YOU CHOOSE TO CONTACT ...(NAME OF 113 LOCAL OR NEAREST LEGAL AID OFFICE)... FOR ASSISTANCE, YOU SHOULD 114 DO SO AS SOON AS POSSIBLE AFTER RECEIPT OF THIS NOTICE. 115 (c) A copy of the final judgment shall be furnished by the 116 clerk by first-class mail to the last known address of every 117 party to the action or to the attorney of record for such party. 118 Any irregularity in such mailing, including the failure to 119 include this statement in any final judgment or order, shall not 120 affect the validity or finality of the final judgment or order 121 or any sale held pursuant to the final judgment or order. Any 122 sale held more than 35 days after the final judgment or order 123 shall not affect the validity or finality of the final judgment 124 or order or any sale h eld pursuant to such judgment or order. 125 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 6 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S (2) PUBLICATION OF SALE. —Notice of sale shall be published 126 on a publicly accessible website as provided in s. 50.0311 for 127 at least 2 consecutive weeks before the sale or once a week for 128 2 consecutive weeks in a new spaper of general circulation, as 129 provided in chapter 50, published in the county where the sale 130 is to be held. The second publication by newspaper shall be at 131 least 5 days before the sale. The notice shall contain: 132 (a) A description of the property to b e sold. 133 (b) The time and place of sale. 134 (c) A statement that the sale will be made pursuant to the 135 order or final judgment. 136 (d) The caption of the action. 137 (e) The name of the clerk making the sale. 138 (f) A statement that any person claiming an inte rest in 139 the surplus from the sale, if any, other than the property owner 140 as of the date of the lis pendens must file a claim before the 141 clerk reports the surplus as unclaimed. 142 143 The court, in its discretion, may enlarge the time of the sale. 144 Notice of the changed time of sale shall be published as 145 provided herein. 146 (3) CONDUCT OF SALE; DEPOSIT REQUIRED. —The sale shall be 147 conducted at public auction at the time and place set forth in 148 the final judgment. The clerk shall receive the service charge 149 imposed in s. 45.035 for services in making, recording, and 150 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 7 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S certifying the sale and title that shall be assessed as costs. 151 At the time of the sale, the successful high bidder shall post 152 with the clerk a deposit equal to 5 percent of the final bid. 153 The deposit shall be applied to the sale price at the time of 154 payment. If final payment is not made within the prescribed 155 period, the clerk shall readvertise the sale as provided in this 156 section and pay all costs of the sale from the deposit. Any 157 remaining funds shall be appl ied toward the judgment. 158 (4) CERTIFICATION OF SALE. —After a sale of the property 159 the clerk shall promptly file a certificate of sale and serve a 160 copy of it on each party in substantially the following form: 161 162 (Caption of Action) 163 164 CERTIFICATE OF SALE 165 166 The undersigned clerk of the court certifies that notice of 167 public sale of the property described in the order or final 168 judgment was published in ...., a newspaper circulated in .... 169 County, Florida, in the manner shown by the proof of publication 170 attached, and on ...., ...(year)..., the property was offered 171 for public sale to the highest and best bidder for cash. The 172 highest and best bid received for the property in the amount of 173 $.... was submitted by ...., to whom the property was sold. The 174 proceeds of the sale are retained for distribution in accordance 175 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 8 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S with the order or final judgment or law. WITNESS my hand and the 176 seal of this court on ...., ...(year).... 177 ...(Clerk)... 178 By ...(Deputy Clerk)... 179 180 (5) CERTIFICATE OF TITLE. —If no objections to the sale are 181 filed within 10 days after filing the certificate of sale, the 182 clerk shall file a certificate of title and serve a copy of it 183 on each party in substantially the following form: 184 185 (Caption of Action) 186 187 CERTIFICATE OF TITLE 188 189 The undersigned clerk of the court certifies that he or she 190 executed and filed a certificate of sale in this action on ...., 191 ...(year)..., for the property described herein and that no 192 objections to the sale have been filed within the time allowed 193 for filing objections. 194 The following property in .... County, Florida: 195 (description) 196 was sold to ................................. 197 198 WITNESS my hand and the seal of the court on ...., ...(year).... 199 ...(Clerk)... 200 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 9 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S By ...(Deputy Clerk)... 201 202 (6) CONFIRMATION; RECORDING. —When the certificate of title 203 is filed the sale shall stand confirmed, and title to the 204 property shall pass to the purchaser named in the certificate 205 without the necessity of any further proceedings or instruments. 206 The certificate of title shall be recorded by the clerk. 207 (7) DISBURSEMENTS OF PROCEEDS.— 208 (a) On filing a certificate of title, the clerk shall 209 disburse the proceeds of the sale in accordance with the order 210 or final judgment and shall file a report of such disbursements 211 and serve a copy of it on each party, and on the Depa rtment of 212 Revenue if the department was named as a defendant in the action 213 or if the Department of Commerce or the former Agency for 214 Workforce Innovation was named as a defendant while the 215 Department of Revenue was providing reemployment assistance tax 216 collection services under contract with the Department of 217 Commerce or the former Agency for Workforce Innovation through 218 an interagency agreement pursuant to s. 443.1316. 219 (b) The certificate of disbursements shall be in 220 substantially the following form: 221 222 (Caption of Action) 223 224 CERTIFICATE OF DISBURSEMENTS 225 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 10 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S 226 The undersigned clerk of the court certifies that he or she 227 disbursed the proceeds received from the sale of the property as 228 provided in the order or final judgment to the persons and in 229 the amounts as follows: 230 Name Amount 231 232 Total disbursements: $.... 233 Surplus retained by clerk, if any: $.... 234 235 IF YOU ARE A PERSON CLAIMING A RIGHT TO FUNDS REMAINING AFTER 236 THE SALE, YOU MUST FILE A CLAIM WITH THE CLERK NO LATER THAN THE 237 DATE THAT THE CLERK REPORTS THE FUNDS AS U NCLAIMED. IF YOU FAIL 238 TO FILE A CLAIM, YOU WILL NOT BE ENTITLED TO ANY REMAINING 239 FUNDS. AFTER THE FUNDS ARE REPORTED AS UNCLAIMED, ONLY THE OWNER 240 OF RECORD AS OF THE DATE OF THE LIS PENDENS MAY CLAIM THE 241 SURPLUS. 242 243 WITNESS my hand and the seal of the court on ...., ...(year).... 244 ...(Clerk)... 245 By ...(Deputy Clerk)... 246 247 (c) If no objections to the report are served within 10 248 days after it is filed, the disbursements by the clerk shall 249 stand approved as reported. If timely objections to the report 250 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 11 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S are served, they shall be heard by the court. Service of 251 objections to the report does not affect or cloud the title of 252 the purchaser of the property in any manner. 253 (d) If there are funds remaining after payment of all 254 disbursements required by the final judgment of foreclosure and 255 shown on the certificate of disbursements, the surplus shall be 256 distributed as provided in this section and ss. 45.0315 -45.035. 257 (8) VALUE OF PROPERTY. —The amount of the bid for the 258 property at the sale shall be conclusively presumed to b e 259 sufficient consideration for the sale. Any party may serve an 260 objection to the amount of the bid within 10 days after the 261 clerk files the certificate of sale. If timely objections to the 262 bid are served, the objections shall be heard by the court. 263 Service of objections to the amount of the bid does not affect 264 or cloud the title of the purchaser in any manner. If the case 265 is one in which a deficiency judgment may be sought and 266 application is made for a deficiency, the amount bid at the sale 267 may be considered by the court as one of the factors in 268 determining a deficiency under the usual equitable principles. 269 (9) EXECUTION SALES. —This section shall not apply to 270 property sold under executions. 271 (10) ELECTRONIC SALES. —The clerk may conduct the sale of 272 real or personal property under an order or judgment pursuant to 273 this section by electronic means. Such electronic sales shall 274 comply with the procedures provided in this chapter, except that 275 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 12 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S electronic proxy bidding shall be allowed and the clerk may 276 require bidders to advance sufficient funds to pay the deposit 277 required by subsection (3). The clerk shall provide access to 278 the electronic sale by computer terminals open to the public at 279 a designated location and shall accept an advance credit proxy 280 bid from the plaintiff of any amount up to the maximum allowable 281 credit bid of the plaintiff. A clerk who conducts such 282 electronic sales may receive electronic deposits and payments 283 related to the sale. 284 Section 2. Section 45.0311, Florida Statutes, is created 285 to read: 286 45.0311 Transparency in judicial sales and foreclosure 287 sales.— 288 (1) This section may be cited as the "Transparency in 289 Judicial Sales and Foreclosure Sales Act." 290 (2) Notwithstanding s. 45.031 or any other law to the 291 contrary: 292 (a) A court of compete nt jurisdiction presiding over a 293 judicial sale or other foreclosure sale conducted in this state 294 or pursuant to the laws of this state may not allow the use of 295 bidding credits or other offsets in excess of 10 percent of the 296 most recent assessed value of th e property, as determined by the 297 property appraiser in the county where the property is located. 298 (b) If the winning bidder of a judicial sale or other 299 foreclosure sale conducted in this state or pursuant to the laws 300 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 13 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S of this state does not remit the full purchase price within 30 301 days after the sale, or cause the full purchase price to be 302 remitted to the seller within 30 days after the sale, the sale 303 is voided and the property must be reauctioned. 304 (c) If a judicial sale or other foreclosure sale conducted 305 in this state or pursuant to the laws of this state is 306 orchestrated or facilitated by an attorney, a parent, a child, a 307 brother, a sister, a grandparent, or a grandchild of that 308 attorney may not bid on the property. A current or former client 309 of such attorney may not bid on the property. For the purposes 310 of this paragraph, a legal entity wholly or predominantly owned 311 by a parent, a child, a brother, a sister, a grandparent, or a 312 grandchild of such attorney or a current or former client of 313 such attorney, may not bid on the property. 314 (d) If a property sold pursuant to a judicial sale or 315 other foreclosure sale conducted in this state or pursuant to 316 the laws of this state is not sold for at least 75 percent of 317 the most recent assessed value of the property, a s determined by 318 the property appraiser in the county where the property is 319 located, such property must be reauctioned. 320 (e) Any judicial sale or other foreclosure sale conducted 321 in this state or pursuant to the laws of this state must be held 322 at a location that is open and available to the public, and the 323 public must be provided reasonable notice of such sale. For the 324 purposes of this paragraph, an area of a building or property 325 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 14 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S which is normally accessible only by a security card, key card, 326 key fob, or other similar means is not open and available to the 327 public. 328 (f) A court of competent jurisdiction in this state may 329 not allow any judicial sale or other foreclosure sale to proceed 330 if such sale is conducted pursuant to rules that contradict this 331 section. A court may not issue an order allowing a property to 332 be sold by way of judicial sale or foreclosure sale which does 333 not comply with the requirements of this section. 334 (g) Any judicial sale or other foreclosure sale conducted 335 in this state or pursuant to the laws of this state in violation 336 of this section is void, upon a successful legal challenge, and 337 the property must be reauctioned pursuant to a valid judicial 338 sale. 339 Section 3. Section 45.036, Florida Statutes, is created to 340 read: 341 45.036 Alternate judicial sales procedure. —A court may 342 order the use of alternate judicial sales procedures in ss. 343 45.031-45.035 if the exceptions are consistent with the 344 requirements of this section and the goals of minimizing 345 expenses and delays, avoiding fraud, and maxi mizing the sale 346 price. 347 (1) ALTERNATE PUBLICATION OF SALE PROCEDURE. —Any 348 publication of sale procedure which is not fully consistent with 349 the publication of sale procedures specified in s. 45.031(2) 350 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 15 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S must require notice of all the information specified in that 351 subsection. 352 (2) SALES NOT CONDUCTED BY THE CLERK OF THE COURT. —If the 353 clerk of the court is not conducting the sale, the person 354 conducting the sale: 355 (a) Must be an auctioneer licensed under part VI of 356 chapter 468, a real estate broker licensed und er chapter 475, or 357 a member of The Florida Bar in good standing; 358 (b) May not be a party to the action or an attorney 359 representing a party in the action; and 360 (c) May not directly or indirectly bid on the property or 361 profit from the sale of the property by any means other than the 362 fee authorized by the court. 363 (3) PREFERENCES PROHIBITED. —An alternate judicial sales 364 procedure may not authorize any bidding preferences, credit 365 preferences, or other preference or advantage to any party or 366 bidder or other person seeking ownership of the property. 367 (4) POSSESSION OF DEPOSITS AND PAYMENTS. —If the bidder's 368 deposit, the bid amount, or any other funds paid by a bidder or 369 a party are not held by the clerk of the court, the funds must 370 be held in an escrow or trus t account pursuant to the laws and 371 rules regulating the license of the person conducting the sale 372 or held in an escrow account of the title insurance agent 373 regulated under part V of chapter 626. The court may audit any 374 such escrow or trust account and may enter an ex parte order at 375 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 16 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S any time requiring the immediate transfer of all related funds 376 to the clerk of the court. 377 (5) CERTIFICATION OF SALE. —After the sale of a property to 378 which this section applies: 379 (a) The clerk is entitled to the service charge in s. 380 45.035(1), which may not be waived by the court; and 381 (b) The clerk of the court or other person who conducted 382 the sale must promptly file a certificate of sale and serve a 383 copy on each party in substantially the following form: 384 385 (Caption of Action) 386 387 CERTIFICATE OF JUDICIAL SALE 388 389 The undersigned .... certifies that notice of public sale 390 of the property described in the order or final judgment was 391 furnished by ...., in the manner shown by the attached, and on 392 ...., ...(year)..., the property was offe red for public sale to 393 the highest and best bidder for cash. The highest and best bid 394 received for the property in the amount of $.... was submitted 395 by ...., to whom the property was sold. The proceeds of the sale 396 are retained for distribution in accordanc e with the order or 397 final judgment or law. WITNESS my hand and the seal of this 398 court on ...., ...(year).... 399 ...(...)... 400 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 17 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S By ...(....)... 401 402 (6) CERTIFICATE OF TITLE. —If property is sold under the 403 method authorized by this section and an objection to the sa le 404 is not filed within 10 days after filing the certificate of 405 sale, or such other time as authorized by the court, the clerk 406 must file a certificate of title and serve a copy of such title 407 on each party in substantially the following form: 408 409 (Caption of Action) 410 411 CERTIFICATE OF TITLE 412 413 The undersigned clerk of the court certifies that a 414 certificate of sale was filed in this action on ...., 415 ...(year)..., for the property described herein and that no 416 objections to the sale have been filed within the time allowed 417 for filing objections. 418 The following property in .... County, Florida: 419 (description) 420 was sold to ................................. 421 422 WITNESS my hand and the seal of the court on ...., ...(year).... 423 ...(Clerk)... 424 By ...(Deputy Clerk)... 425 HB 1375 2025 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1375-00 Page 18 of 18 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S 426 (7) SURPLUS FUNDS.—The requirements related to a 427 foreclosure surplus as provided in ss. 45.031(1), 45.032, 428 45.033, and 45.035(2) may not be waived by the court. 429 (8) DISBURSEMENTS OF PROCEEDS. —If the clerk of the court 430 is not disbursing the proceeds of the sa le, the person who 431 conducted the sale, or a title company licensed under part V of 432 chapter 626, must file a certificate of disbursements in 433 substantially the same form as required by s. 45.031(7). 434 Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025. 435