How Do You Sell a Florissant Rental House With Tenants in It?

You can sell a rental house in Florissant, Missouri with the tenants still living in it. Missouri law lets the lease and the rent pass to the buyer. The City of Florissant then adds its own layer: an annual rental license, a Crime Free certificate, and a local contact rule.

This guide sets the state and city rules side by side, with the section for each, and covers a question no statute answers: what happens to the security deposits at closing.

Can you sell a Florissant rental with the tenants still living there?

Yes. Missouri law makes a transfer of a rented house effective without tenant consent unless the lease says otherwise. The buyer then collects rent under the prior owner's lease (RSMo 441.140 and 535.070).

Nothing in those sections ends a lease because the house changes hands. RSMo 535.070 gives the buyer a court remedy if a tenant stops paying, however the house was transferred.

"[T]he person purchasing such property shall have the right ... to commence proceedings before an associate circuit judge to recover rent and possession, under the terms of the prior owner's lease, for unpaid rent accruing after the transfer of title."

RSMo 535.070, the Missouri statute on buyers of leased property

Under Section 441.140, a tenant who pays the old owner before getting notice of the sale is not penalized for that payment. Some leases carry their own sale clause, so each lease is worth a read before you sign.

What the buyer has to tell your tenants

The buyer's right to collect rent depends on notice to the tenants. RSMo 535.081 calls for written notice that title has transferred, with the means and the date of the transfer. The notice is attached to a copy of the recorded deed.

The section allows a second form in counties of the first classification: a notarized affidavit signed by both the seller and the buyer. Your title company can say which form it uses.

Month-to-month and handshake leases

A lease that was never put in writing and signed is treated as month to month under RSMo 441.060. Either side can end a month-to-month tenancy with written notice. The notice sets the end on a rent-paying date at least one month after the other side receives it.

A written lease with an end date runs on its own terms. If your Florissant rental runs on handshake terms, a buyer is buying month-to-month tenancies.

Selling with tenants in place versus after the lease ends

Selling with tenants in place lets the sale move on your schedule while the rent continues to the buyer. Waiting for the lease to end opens the house to buyers who want to live in it, but you carry the house until the tenant leaves.

One more number belongs in the comparison: the months of rent lost while a house sits empty, which depends on your rent and how long the sale takes.

What does the Florissant rental license require?

The Florissant rental license is required for each residential rental property in the city, renewed every year by January 31. It costs $50 per owner per unit and needs a Crime Free housing certificate, under Chapter 605, Article XVII of the city code.

Section 605.455(B) exempts a house where the occupants are the beneficial owners or their relatives "within the second degree of consanguinity." A house rented to a stranger needs the license.

The Crime Free housing certificate

Section 605.457(A) says "all applicants shall have and maintain a crime free housing certificate." The Florissant Police Department runs the Crime Free program, which the city began offering in 2016. Phase One is "a free 8 hour seminar" covering screening, leases, evictions, and the role of law enforcement.

The city calls Phase One "mandatory per City Of Florissant Residential Rental Property License Ordinance to obtain your license." Phase Two, a property survey, and Phase Three, a safety social, are optional.

The 50-mile rule

Section 605.456(B) says "the owner, property manager or authorized representative must reside within fifty (50) miles of the City of Florissant." An owner who has moved away can meet the rule through a manager or representative who lives inside that radius.

Fees, late charges, and suspension

Section 605.458 sets the fee at "fifty dollars ($50.00) per owner per each residential dwelling unit." A late application adds "two dollars ($2.00) for each month after January 31." The same section says "license renewals may not be processed if the property has outstanding violations."

The city's permit portal opens the yearly renewal window on January 1. The renewal asks for the owner name and the renewal code printed on the notice.

Section 605.461 lets the city suspend a license after more than three code violations in six months, three nuisance notices in 12 months, or listed crimes. Reinstatement costs $100 after a suspension and $200 after a revocation.

No short-term rentals

Section 605.462 says "short term rentals or vacation rentals are prohibited in all residential zoning districts." A Florissant house in a residential district can be rented under the standard license, but not by the night.

The 2021 appeals court ruling

In St. Louis Association of Realtors v. City of Florissant (ED109207), the Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, upheld the license and its Crime Free rule on June 29, 2021.

As Missouri Lawyers Media reported in July 2021, the panel held the ordinance was not unconstitutionally vague, gave enough due process, was not a taking, and was not preempted by state law.

How do the license and the occupancy permit affect a sale?

Florissant writes its rental license around the owner, so a sale raises two questions: whether your own license is current, and what the buyer needs to keep renting. Section 605.459 adds a third: an unfiled license or unpaid fine can hold up new occupancy permits for the owner's rentals.

The fee is charged "per owner," and the 50-mile rule names the owner or the owner's representative. A buyer who plans to keep the tenants can ask Public Works at 314-839-7648 how its own license filing fits the closing date.

Where the occupancy permit comes in

City Code Section 505.050 makes it unlawful to occupy a dwelling until the city issues an occupancy permit, and it applies when a change of occupancy occurs. The city's Occupancy Inspection page says a house "can be sold without an inspection, 'as is'." The buyer then gets the inspection and the permit "prior to anyone moving into or occupying the property."

Whether a sale with the same tenant staying counts as a change of occupancy turns on a definition in the city's property maintenance code, so Public Works is the place to confirm it. Our guide to the Florissant occupancy permit when you sell covers the inspection, the fees, and the 120-day clock.

What happens to the security deposits when you sell?

Missouri's deposit statute does not say how deposits move at a sale, so the purchase contract and the closing statement usually settle it. RSMo 535.300 then governs whoever is the landlord when each tenancy ends.

The statute sets these rules:

• A deposit may not exceed two months' rent.
• The landlord holds it "for the tenant" in a federally insured bank, credit union, or depository institution.
• Within 30 days after the tenancy ends, the landlord returns the full deposit or sends an itemized list of damages with the balance.
• Deductions are limited to unpaid rent, damage beyond ordinary wear and tear, and losses from a tenant's failure to give proper notice.
• A tenant can recover twice the amount wrongfully withheld.

Because the section speaks only of "the landlord," it helps to put in writing who holds each deposit after closing: some sales move the funds to the buyer, and others give the buyer a closing credit. A title company can show how it handles either one, and a Missouri attorney can review the contract language.

What if a tenant stops paying before the sale closes?

A Missouri landlord can file a rent and possession case before an associate circuit judge in the county where the house sits. RSMo 535.020 says the 441.060 notice is not required first. For a Florissant house, that county is St. Louis County, in the 21st Judicial Circuit.

A tenant who stays after the lease term ends, following a written demand to leave, can face an unlawful detainer case under RSMo 534.030.

Because RSMo 535.070 gives the buyer its own case for rent due after the transfer, a seller can close with a slow-paying tenant still in the house. A seller can also finish the case first and sell the house empty, which takes longer.

The 2026 numbers for a Florissant rental sale

Florissant houses sold at a median price of $188,610 in the three months ending September 2026, up 2.0% from a year earlier, according to Redfin's housing market data. The median house sold in 23 days, up from 18 days a year earlier, and 209 sold in September.

Zillow's Home Value Index, which estimates the value of all houses rather than what sold, put the typical Florissant house at $195,065 in September 2026, up about 2.2% from a year earlier.

A city of owner-occupied ranch houses

Florissant had 21,229 housing units, 82.3% of them single-family detached, and a homeownership rate of 67.1%. Those figures come from the city's 2026-2030 Consolidated Plan, citing 2024 American Community Survey estimates. The same plan says most of the housing was built between 1950 and 1979.

Beyond the sale price, some landlords count the commission, repairs a buyer's inspection turns up, and rent lost while the house sits empty. The $50 license fee per unit, insurance, and taxes run until closing.

Where a direct cash sale fits

A direct cash sale fits a Florissant landlord who wants to skip the listing. We buy houses with tenants in place, so no eviction is needed before you sell.

Propcash is a direct cash homebuyer. We sign the purchase contract as the buyer and buy as-is, which can include a house with open city violations or a lapsed license. You get one transparent cash offer based on local market data, with the reasoning shown. Sellers pay no commissions or fees.

You pick the closing date, and a cash closing can happen in as few as 7 days after the contract is signed. If listing the house empty would serve you better, we will say so.

You can get a cash offer on your Florissant rental, or see how we work on our Florissant sell-house-fast page. If the house is already empty, our guide to selling a vacant house in Florissant covers the registration fees. For more ways to structure a tenant-occupied sale, see our guide to selling a house with tenants.