Free tool
Security deposit deadline calculator
Enter the move-out date and the state. You get the deadline, how long is left, and the condition in that state’s statute that decides when the clock actually starts.
Pick a state and the date the tenant handed back possession.
Returning the money is only half of it
Nearly every state that sets a deadline also requires an itemised statement when anything is withheld, and the usual penalty for a missing or late statement is forfeiting the right to withhold at all. Send, inside the deadline:
- Each deduction on its own line, described specifically — “replace broken bedroom blind, $85”, not “repairs, $300”.
- Invoices, receipts or written estimates.
- The arithmetic: deposit held, deductions totalled, refund enclosed.
- Proof of delivery to the forwarding address.
And remember that normal wear and tear is not damage. Carpet flattened by four years of walking and paint faded by sunlight are the cost of letting property, not the tenant’s bill.
Common questions
- When does the clock start?
- Usually the later of the tenancy ending and the tenant handing back possession. Several states add a third condition — the tenant supplying a forwarding address in writing — and four require a demand from the tenant before the duty arises at all. The calculator flags your state's condition.
- What happens if I miss the deadline?
- The usual penalty is not a fine but forfeiting the right to withhold anything at all, even for genuine damage. Many states add double or treble damages plus the tenant's legal fees.
- Do any states have no deadline?
- Two: Kentucky and Tennessee. Both still require the landlord to account for the deposit; neither sets a number of days.
- Can the lease give me longer?
- Usually not — a statutory deadline is a ceiling a lease cannot extend. A few states expressly allow it: Colorado up to 60 days, Idaho up to 30, and since 2026 Louisiana up to two months by written agreement.
Have the software do this every time
Pacific Rentals Pro applies these rules to every lease and every move-out automatically, using the same verified state data as this page.
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