Security Deposit Law
What Mississippi landlords must do with security deposits — the cap, interest, return deadline, account rules, and penalties — with citations to the statute itself.
Verified as of June 11, 2026
This page is general information, not legal advice. Statutes change — verify with the cited sources or an attorney.
Deposit cap
No limit — Mississippi does not cap residential security deposits.
Interest
No — Mississippi law does not require landlords to pay interest on security deposits.
Return deadline
Return the balance within 45 days, with a written itemized notice for anything you keep.
Miss. Code Ann. § 89-8-21 regulates how deposits are held, applied, and returned, but sets no maximum amount. The entire Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (§§ 89-8-1 through 89-8-45) is silent on deposit size, so market practice (commonly one month's rent) is a business choice, not a legal ceiling.
Section 89-8-21 and the rest of the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act say nothing about interest on deposits. Any interest a deposit earns is not addressed by statute, so there is no obligation to credit it to the tenant.
The statute says the remaining deposit must be returned "no later than forty-five (45) days after the termination of his tenancy, the delivery of possession and demand by the tenant" — termination, hand-back of the unit, and a tenant demand are all listed as triggers. Any amount claimed must be itemized in a written notice delivered to the tenant.
No separate, escrow, or bank account is required. The deposit must be "held by the landlord for the tenant," and the tenant's claim to it "shall be prior to the claim of any creditor of the landlord" — a priority rule, not a segregation rule.
Keeping any part of the deposit "in violation of this section and with absence of good faith" exposes the landlord (or a transferee, such as a property buyer) to "damages not to exceed Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00) in addition to any actual damages." The $200 is a ceiling on the statutory add-on; the tenant can still recover the wrongfully withheld amount itself.
None known. No Mississippi city or county is known to impose its own security deposit cap, interest, or return rules; Miss. Code Ann. § 89-8-21 governs statewide.
You may claim only amounts reasonably necessary to (1) cure unpaid rent, (2) repair tenant-caused damage beyond ordinary wear and tear, (3) clean the premises at move-out, or (4) cover other reasonable and necessary expenses from the tenant's default — and only "if the payment or deposit is made for any or all of those specific purposes."
A landlord claims the deposit "by written notice delivered to the tenant," and that notice "shall itemize the amounts claimed." A verbal explanation or a lump-sum figure does not satisfy the statute.
The deposit is held by the landlord for the tenant, and the tenant's claim to it "shall be prior to the claim of any creditor of the landlord." Treat deposit money as the tenant's, not as working capital.
Section 89-8-21 covers payments whose primary function is to secure performance of the rental agreement, but expressly excludes a payment or deposit — including advance rent — "made to secure the execution of a rental agreement." Holding fees collected before lease signing sit in a different legal bucket.
The penalty provision reaches "a landlord or transferee," so if you sell a rental, the deposit obligation and the bad-faith damages exposure can attach to the new owner. Document deposit transfers at closing.
The retention violates § 89-8-21, and if a court finds an absence of good faith, you owe up to $200 in statutory damages on top of the tenant's actual damages and the withheld amount.
The statute allows repair deductions only for damage "exclusive of ordinary wear and tear," so wear-and-tear charges are wrongful withholding and feed the bad-faith damages exposure.
Late return is a statutory violation; combined with a finding of bad faith, it exposes you to up to $200 plus actual damages, and small-claims judges have little sympathy for missed deadlines.
Deductions are permitted only "if the payment or deposit is made for any or all of those specific purposes" — a lease that never tied the deposit to cleaning or default costs undercuts your right to withhold for them.
There is no statutory limit. Mississippi's Residential Landlord and Tenant Act regulates how deposits are held and returned (Miss. Code Ann. § 89-8-21) but never caps the amount, so landlords can set the deposit by market and risk — one to two months' rent is typical practice, not a legal rule.
45 days. The statute requires the remaining deposit back to the tenant no later than 45 days after termination of the tenancy, delivery of possession, and demand by the tenant. Anything withheld must be itemized in a written notice delivered to the tenant.
Only amounts reasonably necessary for unpaid rent, repairing tenant-caused damage beyond ordinary wear and tear, cleaning at move-out, or other reasonable and necessary expenses caused by the tenant's default — and only if the deposit was taken for those purposes. Every deduction must appear in a written itemized notice.
No. Mississippi law is silent on deposit interest, so landlords have no obligation to pay or credit interest to tenants.
No. The statute requires you to hold the deposit "for the tenant" and gives the tenant's claim priority over your creditors, but it does not require a separate, escrow, or trust account. Many landlords still segregate deposits as a best practice.
If you keep any portion in violation of the statute and a court finds you lacked good faith, you can be liable for up to $200 in statutory damages in addition to the tenant's actual damages — plus, of course, the wrongfully withheld deposit itself.
This page is general information, not legal advice. Statutes change — verify with the cited sources or an attorney.
Statute facts on this page were verified against the cited official sources on June 11, 2026.
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