Security Deposit Laws
How much you can charge, whether the deposit earns interest, how fast it must be returned, and what violations cost — in plain English, with citations to each state's statute.
This page is general information, not legal advice. Statutes change — verify with the cited sources or an attorney.
Alabama (AL)
Cap: One month's rent, with extra deposits allowed for pets, alterations to the premises, or increased liability risks. · Return: 60 days after the tenancy ends and the tenant delivers possession. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Alaska (AK)
Cap: Two months' rent (deposit plus prepaid rent combined), unless monthly rent exceeds $2,000. An extra pet deposit of up to one month's rent is allowed. · Return: 14 days if the tenant gave proper notice and nothing is deducted for damage; 30 days if damage costs are deducted or the tenant gave no proper notice. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Arizona (AZ)
Cap: 1.5 months' rent maximum · Return: 14 business days after move-out · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Arkansas (AR)
Cap: Maximum 2 months' rent (covered landlords only). · Return: Return within 60 days of termination of the tenancy, with an itemized written notice for any deductions. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
California (CA)
Cap: One month's rent for most landlords; two months for qualifying small landlords (never for service members). · Return: Itemized statement plus any refund due within 21 calendar days after the tenant vacates. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Colorado (CO)
Cap: Maximum of two months' rent; plus an optional refundable pet deposit capped at $300. · Return: 30 days after lease termination or surrender (whichever is last); a lease may extend this to no more than 60 days. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-15
Connecticut (CT)
Cap: Maximum two months' rent; one month's rent if the tenant is 62 or older. · Return: Within 21 days after the tenancy ends, or 15 days after receiving the tenant's written forwarding address, whichever is later. · Interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Delaware (DE)
Cap: 1 month's rent for leases of a year or more; furnished units are exempt. · Return: Return the deposit (or the balance with an itemized damage list) within 20 days. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
District of Columbia (DC)
Cap: One month's rent, and you can only charge it once. · Return: 45 days after the tenancy ends — either return the deposit with interest, or send written notice that you intend to withhold. · Interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Florida (FL)
Cap: No statutory cap. · Return: Return the deposit within 15 days if you make no claim; you have 30 days to send a written notice of intent to impose a claim. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-10
Georgia (GA)
Cap: Two months' rent maximum, for leases entered into or renewed on or after July 1, 2024. · Return: 30 days after the landlord obtains possession of the premises. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Hawaii (HI)
Cap: One month's rent, plus an optional pet deposit of up to one additional month's rent. · Return: 14 days after the rental agreement terminates. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Idaho (ID)
Cap: No statutory limit on the deposit amount. · Return: 21 days by default; never more than 30 days after the tenant surrenders the premises. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Illinois (IL)
Cap: No statewide cap — Illinois law does not limit how much you can charge. · Return: Itemize claimed damage within 30 days of move-out, or return the deposit in full within 45 days. · Interest required · Verified 2026-06-10
Indiana (IN)
Cap: No statutory limit on the deposit amount. · Return: 45 days to deliver an itemized written notice and refund the balance. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Iowa (IA)
Cap: Two months' rent maximum. · Return: 30 days from termination of the tenancy and receipt of the tenant's mailing address or delivery instructions. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Kansas (KS)
Cap: 1 month's rent (unfurnished); 1½ months' rent (furnished); plus an extra ½ month's rent if pets are allowed. · Return: Return within 14 days after deductions are determined, and never more than 30 days after the tenancy ends. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-10
Kentucky (KY)
Cap: No statutory cap — Kentucky law does not limit how much you can charge as a security deposit. · Return: No fixed refund deadline — instead, 30- and 60-day windows govern what happens to unclaimed deposits. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Louisiana (LA)
Cap: No statutory cap — Louisiana does not limit security deposit amounts. · Return: One month after the lease terminates — with a 15-day itemization extension arriving August 1, 2026. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-16
Maine (ME)
Cap: 2 months' rent statewide; 1 month in Portland for covered units. · Return: 30 days max under a written lease; 21 days for a tenancy at will. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-15
Maryland (MD)
Cap: 1 month's rent (since Oct. 1, 2024), with a narrow 2-month exception. · Return: 45 days after the end of the tenancy, with accrued interest. · Interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Massachusetts (MA)
Cap: One month's rent — no exceptions · Return: 30 days after the tenancy ends · Interest required · Verified 2026-06-10
Michigan (MI)
Cap: 1½ months' rent maximum. · Return: Within 30 days after the tenant moves out, mail an itemized list of damages plus a check for the rest of the deposit. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Minnesota (MN)
Cap: No state limit; Minneapolis caps deposits at one month's rent (sometimes half a month). · Return: Three weeks after the tenancy ends (5 days if the tenant left due to condemnation), return the deposit with interest or send a written statement of the specific reason for withholding. · Interest required · Verified 2026-06-15
Mississippi (MS)
Cap: No limit — Mississippi does not cap residential security deposits. · Return: Return the balance within 45 days, with a written itemized notice for anything you keep. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Missouri (MO)
Cap: Maximum of two months' rent. · Return: 30 days after the tenancy ends. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Montana (MT)
Cap: No limit. Montana law does not cap residential security deposits. · Return: 30 days to send the itemized list and refund; only 10 days if there are no deductions. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Nebraska (NE)
Cap: One month's rent, plus an optional pet deposit of up to one-fourth of a month's rent. · Return: 14 days after the tenancy ends, with a written itemization. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Nevada (NV)
Cap: 3 months' rent, counting deposit, surety bond, and last month's rent combined. · Return: Itemized written accounting plus any refund within 30 days after the tenancy ends. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
New Hampshire (NH)
Cap: One month's rent or $100, whichever is greater. · Return: Return the deposit, plus any interest due, within 30 days of the end of the tenancy. · Interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
New Jersey (NJ)
Cap: 1.5 months' rent maximum. Any additional security collected later is capped at 10% of the current deposit per year. · Return: Return the deposit plus the tenant's accumulated interest, less itemized deductions, within 30 days after the lease ends, by personal delivery or registered/certified mail. · Interest required · Verified 2026-06-10
New Mexico (NM)
Cap: Leases under one year: max one month's rent. Annual leases: no fixed dollar cap, but the deposit must be reasonable. · Return: 30 days to return the deposit balance with an itemized deduction list. · Interest required · Verified 2026-06-16
New York (NY)
Cap: One month's rent — no exceptions for pets or furnished units. · Return: Return the deposit with an itemized statement within 14 days after the tenant vacates. · Interest required · Verified 2026-06-10
North Carolina (NC)
Cap: 2 weeks' rent (week-to-week), 1.5 months' rent (month-to-month), 2 months' rent (longer terms). Reasonable nonrefundable pet fee allowed on top. · Return: Mail or deliver an itemized accounting and any refund within 30 days after the tenancy ends and the tenant moves out. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-10
North Dakota (ND)
Cap: One month's rent, with two narrow exceptions allowing up to two months, plus a separate pet-deposit cap of $2,500 or two months' rent (whichever is greater). · Return: 30 days to deliver or mail the refund, with an itemized list of anything withheld. · Interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Ohio (OH)
Cap: No statutory limit on the deposit amount. · Return: 30 days after the rental agreement terminates and the tenant delivers possession. · Interest required · Verified 2026-06-10
Oklahoma (OK)
Cap: No statutory limit on the deposit amount. · Return: 45 days after the tenancy ends, possession is delivered, and the tenant makes written demand. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Oregon (OR)
Cap: No statewide cap, but mid-tenancy increases are restricted and Portland and Eugene cap deposits by ordinance. · Return: Written accounting and refund within 31 days after the tenancy terminates and the tenant delivers possession. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Pennsylvania (PA)
Cap: Two months' rent in the first year of the lease; one month's rent from year two onward. · Return: 30 days from lease termination or surrender and acceptance of the unit, whichever comes first. · Interest required · Verified 2026-06-10
Rhode Island (RI)
Cap: One month's rent, plus an optional furniture deposit (up to one more month) for qualifying furnished units. · Return: 20 days, with an itemized written notice of any deductions. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
South Carolina (SC)
Cap: No statutory cap — South Carolina does not limit how much a landlord may charge. · Return: 30 days, with an itemized written notice of any deductions. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
South Dakota (SD)
Cap: One month's rent, unless both parties agree to more for special conditions. · Return: Two weeks (14 days) — increasing to 21 days on July 1, 2026. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Tennessee (TN)
Cap: No statutory cap — Tennessee does not limit how much you can charge. · Return: No fixed return deadline — but a 60-day unclaimed-deposit rule and a 30-day damage-discovery cutoff apply. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Texas (TX)
Cap: No statutory cap. · Return: Refund (or itemized accounting) within 30 days after the tenant surrenders the premises. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-10
Utah (UT)
Cap: No statewide limit on security deposit amounts. · Return: Return the deposit balance, prepaid rent balance, and an itemized deduction notice within 30 days. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Vermont (VT)
Cap: No statewide limit. Burlington caps deposits at one month's rent, plus an optional half-month pet payment. · Return: 14 days from when the landlord learns the tenant has vacated or abandoned the unit, with a written itemized statement; 60 days for seasonal rentals. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-16
Virginia (VA)
Cap: Two months' periodic rent, maximum. · Return: Itemized written notice and any refund due within 45 days after the tenancy ends or the tenant vacates, whichever is later. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-15
Washington (WA)
Cap: No statewide dollar cap for ordinary rentals — but watch local caps (Seattle) and the manufactured-housing cap. · Return: Full and specific written statement plus refund within 30 days of move-out (or within 30 days of learning of abandonment). · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
West Virginia (WV)
Cap: No statutory limit on the security deposit amount. · Return: Within the statutory 'notice period': 60 days after the tenancy ends, or 45 days after a new tenant moves in — whichever is shorter. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-16
Wisconsin (WI)
Cap: No statutory limit on security deposit amount. · Return: 21 days, measured from a statutorily defined trigger date. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
Wyoming (WY)
Cap: No statutory limit on security deposit amounts. · Return: 30 days after the rental agreement ends (or 15 days after receiving the tenant's new mailing address, whichever is later), with a 30-day extension if the unit is damaged. · No interest required · Verified 2026-06-11
More states are on the way. Each guide is verified against the official statute text before it's published.