Security Deposit Law
What Nevada 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
3 months' rent, counting deposit, surety bond, and last month's rent combined.
Interest
No interest is required on residential security deposits in Nevada.
Return deadline
Itemized written accounting plus any refund within 30 days after the tenancy ends.
NRS 118A.242(1) provides the landlord "may not demand or receive a security deposit or a surety bond, or a combination thereof, including the last month's rent, whose total amount or value exceeds 3 months' periodic rent." Prepaid last month's rent counts against the cap, so you cannot stack it on top of a full 3-month deposit.
NRS chapter 118A contains no provision requiring landlords to pay interest on security deposits. The deposit statutes (NRS 118A.240-118A.250) are silent on interest, so none is owed unless your lease promises it.
NRS 118A.242(4) requires the landlord to "provide the tenant with an itemized, written accounting of the disposition of the security deposit or surety bond, or a combination thereof, and return any remaining portion of the security deposit to the tenant no later than 30 days after the termination of the tenancy." Delivery is by handing it to the tenant personally or mailing it to the tenant's present or last known address. Deductions are limited to the purposes in NRS 118A.240: remedying rent defaults, repairing damage beyond normal wear, and reasonable cleaning.
Nevada law imposes no trust-account or separate-account requirement for residential security deposits; NRS 118A.240-118A.250 say nothing about how deposits must be held or banked.
Under NRS 118A.242(6), a landlord who "fails or refuses to return the remainder of a security deposit within 30 days after the end of a tenancy" is "liable to the tenant for damages: (a) In an amount equal to the entire security deposit; and (b) For a sum to be fixed by the court of not more than the amount of the entire security deposit." The court weighs the landlord's good faith, course of conduct, and harm to the tenant in setting the additional sum.
None identified. Residential security deposits are governed statewide by NRS chapter 118A; no city or county deposit ordinance overlay (Las Vegas, Henderson, Reno) was found.
NRS 118A.242(2) lets a tenant, "if the landlord consents," purchase a surety bond in lieu of all or part of the deposit. Subsection (3) makes clear the landlord is not required to accept a bond and "may not require a tenant to purchase a surety bond."
NRS 118A.242(8): "Except for an agreement which provides for a nonrefundable charge for cleaning, in a reasonable amount, no rental agreement may contain any provision characterizing any security deposit under this section as nonrefundable." Any other 'nonrefundable deposit' language is prohibited.
NRS 118A.250 requires the landlord to deliver a signed written receipt for the deposit (or surety bond) upon the tenant's request, and the tenant may refuse to make rent payments until the receipt is provided.
On termination of the landlord's interest, NRS 118A.244(1) requires written notice to the tenant of the successor's name, address, and phone number and that the remaining deposit was transferred. The successor must accept the deposit and "shall not require any additional security deposit" during the same tenancy (NRS 118A.244(3)).
The cap in NRS 118A.242(1) counts the deposit, any surety bond, AND last month's rent together; the combined total cannot exceed 3 months' periodic rent, so the demand is unlawful.
You become liable for the entire deposit plus a court-fixed sum of up to the entire deposit again — effectively up to double the deposit (NRS 118A.242(6)).
That provision is prohibited; only a reasonable, agreed-upon nonrefundable cleaning charge survives under NRS 118A.242(8).
NRS 118A.240 limits deposit use to remedying rent defaults, repairing damage other than normal wear, and reasonable cleaning; wear-and-tear deductions invite the statutory damages in NRS 118A.242(6).
Up to 3 months' periodic rent — but that cap covers the security deposit, any surety bond, and last month's rent combined (NRS 118A.242(1)). If you collect last month's rent up front, it eats into the 3-month limit.
30 days from the termination of the tenancy. Within that window you must hand-deliver or mail an itemized written accounting of any deductions along with the remaining balance (NRS 118A.242(4)).
You're liable for the entire security deposit plus an additional court-fixed amount of up to the deposit again — up to roughly double the deposit. Courts consider whether you acted in good faith when setting the extra amount (NRS 118A.242(6)).
No. NRS chapter 118A has no interest requirement and no trust-account or separate-account requirement for residential deposits. Good bookkeeping is still wise, but neither is mandated by statute.
Yes, if the rental agreement provides for a nonrefundable cleaning charge "in a reasonable amount." That is the only nonrefundable charge allowed — no other part of the deposit may be characterized as nonrefundable (NRS 118A.242(8)).
Transfer the remaining deposit to the buyer and give the tenant written notice of the buyer's name, address, and phone number. The new owner must accept the deposit and cannot demand an additional one from the existing tenant (NRS 118A.244).
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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