Free Security Deposit Return Letter (All States)
Auto-calculating refund letter for any state. Enter the deposit and each deduction, and the generator totals them and computes the refund or balance owed, live on the page and in the PDF. Then check your state’s return deadline and itemization rules in the table below before you send it.
Direct answer: a security deposit return letter is the itemized accounting a landlord sends after move-out, and every state sets its own deadline and rules for it. The letter shows the deposit received, any interest your state requires, each deduction with its amount and reason, and the refund or balance owed. Deadlines differ sharply: California requires the itemized statement and refund within 21 calendar days after the tenant vacates (Civ. Code 1950.5(h)); New York within fourteen days (Gen. Oblig. Law 7-108(1-a)(e)); Florida within 15 days if nothing is claimed, or a written notice of claim within 30 days (Fla. Stat. 83.49(3)(a)). Late or incomplete accounting can cost a landlord the right to keep anything, and in several states a penalty of up to twice the deposit.
Key takeaways
- The deadline is state law and usually runs from move-out or the end of the tenancy, not from when you get around to it.
- Itemize every deduction, with a description and amount; several states also require receipts, invoices or photographs.
- Ordinary wear and tear is never deductible. Deduct for unpaid rent, damage beyond normal wear, and cleaning back to move-in condition.
- Send it even if nothing is refunded. The letter proves you met the deadline and supports any claim for a balance.
- Prove the date sent, to the forwarding address the tenant gave you.
Generate Your Security Deposit Return Letter
Choose the state, enter the tenancy dates and the deposit, and list each deduction. The builder totals the deductions and shows the refund balance as you type. Enter your state’s deadline for your records; the letter prints it so the tenant can see the accounting was timely.
Start the clock on move-out day
Record the date the tenant vacated and returned the keys, and the date you received a written forwarding address. Then calendar your state’s deadline from the correct trigger. In California and New York the clock runs from the date the tenant vacated; under the model act it runs from termination, delivery of possession and the tenant’s demand.
List each deduction with a specific description. Leave unused rows blank; the generator totals only completed rows.
What is a security deposit return letter?
A security deposit return letter is the landlord’s written, itemized accounting of what happened to the tenant’s deposit at the end of the tenancy. It goes by several names: deposit disposition letter, itemized statement of deductions, deposit refund letter. Whatever it is called, it answers four questions for the tenant and, if there is ever a dispute, for a judge: how much was held, what was deducted and why, what is being returned, and when and how the accounting was sent.
The letter matters because deposit law in every state is built around it. The model Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act (URLTA), the Uniform Law Commission’s 1972 template for many state codes, allows the landlord to apply the deposit to accrued rent and damages “all as itemized by the landlord in a written notice delivered to the tenant together with the amount due” (URLTA section 2.101(b)). State statutes elaborate that basic duty in different ways, but they share the same logic: a deposit belongs to the tenant until the landlord accounts for it in writing, on time.
The letter is not optional when you keep anything
If any part of the deposit is kept, the written itemization is the landlord’s legal basis for keeping it. Skipping it, sending it late, or sending a vague one is the most common way landlords lose deposit disputes they would otherwise win on the facts.
How long does a landlord have to return a security deposit?
The deadline is set by each state’s statute; among the verified examples below it is fourteen days in New York and the model act and 21 calendar days in California, while Florida uses a two-track rule of 15 days to return or 30 days to give notice of a claim. The table summarizes what four sources actually say, checked against the official texts.
| Source | Deadline | What must be sent | Penalty for noncompliance |
|---|---|---|---|
| URLTA § 2.101 (model act) | [14] days after termination of the tenancy, delivery of possession and demand by the tenant | Written notice itemizing accrued rent and damages applied, with the amount due | Property and money due plus damages of [twice] the amount wrongfully withheld and reasonable attorney’s fees |
| California Civ. Code § 1950.5(h) | No later than 21 calendar days after the tenant has vacated | Itemized statement of the basis for and amount of any security received and its disposition, with supporting documents and photographs (unless repair and cleaning deductions total one hundred twenty-five dollars or less, or the tenant validly waived them) | Bad-faith retention: statutory damages of up to twice the security, plus actual damages (§ 1950.5(m)) |
| Florida Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(a) | 15 days after termination if no claim is made; if a claim is made, written notice within 30 days | Notice of intention to impose a claim, sent by certified mail to the last known mailing address or by email as the statute allows, in the statutory form; the tenant then has 15 days to object | See the Florida statute and our Florida page |
| New York Gen. Oblig. Law § 7-108(1-a)(e), (g) | Within fourteen days after the tenant has vacated | Itemized statement indicating the basis for the amount retained, if any, with the remaining deposit | Actual damages; willful violation: punitive damages of up to twice the deposit |
Two lessons follow from the table. First, the trigger varies: New York and California count from the date the tenant vacated, the model act from termination plus delivery of possession plus the tenant’s demand, and Florida from termination of the rental agreement. Second, the content varies: Florida prescribes the wording of the notice of claim and gives the tenant fifteen days to object; California requires supporting documents. Our security deposit return deadlines by state guide compares every state, and the state table below links each state’s own return letter, where one exists, and its deposit law guide.
Security deposit return letters by state
Use your state’s own letter and guide to confirm the deadline, the itemization rules, any interest requirement and the penalties before you send.