Free Texas Security Deposit Notice
Texas security deposit notice under TPC Chapter 92, Subchapter C. Use to document deposit handling, holding details, and the tenant’s written forwarding address — which under §92.107 is what triggers the landlord’s duty to act. The §92.103(a) deadline itself is the 30th day after the tenant surrenders the premises.
Free Texas Security Deposit Notice — overview
A Texas Security Deposit Notice is a general security deposit notice for Texas residential tenancies under TPC Chapter 92, Subchapter C. Use to document deposit handling at lease signing or any time during tenancy.
Complete the Security Deposit Notice
Complete the form below to generate a Texas Security Deposit Notice. Use this notice to document deposit handling – amount, holding institution, and the tenant’s written forwarding address, which under §92.107 is what triggers the landlord’s duty to refund or itemize. The §92.103(a) deadline itself is the 30th day after surrender of the premises.
⚠ Security deposit handling is one of the most-litigated areas of landlord-tenant law
Courts strictly enforce statutory itemization, timing, and notice requirements. Texas Property Code §92.109 imposes substantial penalties for bad-faith retention: $100 + three times the portion wrongfully withheld + the tenant’s reasonable attorney’s fees — and the landlord, not the tenant, bears the burden of proving that a retention was reasonable. Document every charge with photos, receipts, and inspection records. Consult a Texas attorney for high-value disputes.
1. Parties
2. Rental Property & Lease
3. Security Deposit Held
4. Interest Rate & Disclosure
Texas does not have a statewide interest-rate requirement for security deposits, and no statutory cap on the deposit amount. Texas Property Code §92.103(a) sets the deadline at the 30th day after the date the tenant surrenders the premises. Section 92.107 suspends the landlord’s obligation to refund or itemize until the tenant gives a written statement of a forwarding address, but it does not extend or restart that 30-day period, and §92.109(d) keys the bad-faith presumption solely to the 30th day after surrender. Use this notice to document deposit handling – including bank holding details (where applicable), the request for a written forwarding address, and any agreed conditions for return.
5. Landlord / Agent Signature
About the Texas Security Deposit Notice
Texas Property Code Chapter 92, Subchapter C (§§ 92.101-92.113) provides the framework for residential security deposits. Texas sets no statutory cap on the amount of a residential security deposit and imposes no statewide interest-rate requirement. The key statutory provisions for Texas landlords: §92.103(a) requires the landlord to refund the deposit on or before the 30th day after the date the tenant surrenders the premises; §92.104(b) forbids retaining any portion for normal wear and tear; §92.104(c) requires a written description and itemized list of all deductions whenever any portion is retained, with no dollar threshold and only one exception (the tenant owed rent at surrender and there is no controversy about the amount); and §92.107 provides that the landlord is not obligated to refund or itemize until the tenant gives a written statement of a forwarding address, while expressly preserving the tenant’s right to a refund if none is given. §92.109 imposes the penalties: bad-faith retention costs $100 + three times the portion wrongfully withheld + the tenant’s reasonable attorney’s fees, and a bad-faith failure to give the written description and itemized list separately forfeits the right to withhold any portion and the right to sue the tenant for damage to the premises. The landlord — not the tenant — carries the burden of proving that a retention was reasonable (§92.109(c)), and failure to refund or itemize on or before the 30th day after surrender is presumed to be bad faith (§92.109(d)). Best practice: document deposit handling at lease signing (use this notice), retain detailed move-in/move-out records, and ask the tenant for a written forwarding address at move-out.
Texas Security Deposit Framework
- Statute: Texas Property Code Chapter 92, Subchapter C (§§ 92.101-92.113)
- No statutory cap on the deposit amount; no statewide interest-rate requirement
- Refund deadline: on or before the 30th day after the tenant surrenders the premises (§92.103(a))
- No dollar threshold for itemizing a deduction — a written description and itemized list is required whenever any portion is retained (§92.104(c))
- Forwarding address: the landlord’s duty to refund or itemize does not arise until the tenant gives one in writing, but the tenant does not forfeit the refund by failing to give one (§92.107)
- Bad-faith penalty: $100 + three times the portion wrongfully withheld + the tenant’s attorney’s fees (§92.109(a))
- The landlord bears the burden of proving a retention was reasonable (§92.109(c)); missing the 30th day after surrender is presumed bad faith (§92.109(d))
Penalties for Improper Handling
Texas Property Code §92.109 provides substantial penalties for bad-faith retention of the security deposit. A landlord who in bad faith retains a deposit is liable for $100 + three times the portion wrongfully withheld + the tenant’s reasonable attorney’s fees (§92.109(a)). Separately, a landlord who in bad faith fails to give the written description and itemized list forfeits the right to withhold any portion of the deposit and the right to bring suit against the tenant for damage to the premises (§92.109(b)). In a suit brought by the tenant, the landlord has the burden of proving that the retention of any portion was reasonable (§92.109(c)), and a landlord who fails either to refund the deposit or to provide the written itemization on or before the 30th day after the tenant surrenders possession is presumed to have acted in bad faith (§92.109(d)). Best practice for Texas landlords: document the deposit at lease signing (this notice), itemize every charge against the deposit with specificity at move-out, attach supporting documentation, deliver on or before the 30th day after surrender, and keep records of everything.
Best Practices
- Document with photos. Move-in and move-out photos are powerful evidence in any deposit dispute.
- Keep receipts. Charges must be supported by actual costs – retain invoices, contractor estimates, and receipts.
- Distinguish wear-and-tear from damage. Texas Property Code §92.104(b) forbids retaining any portion of the deposit for normal wear and tear. Faded paint, minor carpet wear, and small nail holes are typically not chargeable.
- Time everything precisely. Texas fixes the deadline at the 30th day after the tenant surrenders the premises (§92.103(a)); missing it raises the §92.109(d) presumption of bad faith.
- Send by trackable method. Certified mail with return receipt is the gold standard – establishes both delivery and receipt date.
Related Resources
- Texas security deposit laws
- Texas habitability laws
- Texas landlord tenant laws
- Texas eviction notice laws
- Texas late fee laws
- Security deposit laws by state
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a security deposit notice and a disposition statement?
They sit at opposite ends of the tenancy. A security deposit notice is a move-in document: it records what you received, what the money secures, where it is held, and how the tenant gets it back, and it is the place to capture the forwarding-address request and any conditions your lease imposes. A disposition statement is the move-out document required when you keep part of the money, and Tex. Prop. Code § 92.104(c) fixes its content as the balance of the deposit, if any, together with a written description and itemized list of all deductions. Use the notice at signing and the disposition statement after surrender; they are not interchangeable.
Does Texas law require a landlord to give a security deposit receipt or notice?
No. Subchapter C of Chapter 92 imposes refund, deduction, itemisation, and penalty duties, but it contains no requirement that a Texas landlord issue a receipt or a written deposit notice at the start of a tenancy, and no requirement to hold the money in a separate or interest-bearing account. Issuing one is practice, not statute. The practical case for it is evidential: § 92.109(c) puts the burden of proving that a retention was reasonable on the landlord, and a signed document fixing the amount received, the date, and the condition of the premises at move-in is the cheapest way to meet a burden you will carry alone.
How much security deposit can I collect in Texas, and what counts as one?
Subchapter C sets no statutory cap on a residential security deposit. What matters more for your paperwork is the definition. Tex. Prop. Code § 92.102 defines a security deposit as any advance of money, other than a rental application deposit or an advance payment of rent, intended primarily to secure performance under a lease of a dwelling. That definition follows the substance, not the label, so a sum you call a pet fee, a key deposit, or a cleaning deposit is treated as a security deposit if it primarily secures performance, and the § 92.103 refund clock and § 92.104 itemisation duty attach to it. Name each sum on the notice and state what it is.
Can the tenant use the security deposit as the last month’s rent?
No, and the statute penalises it. Section 92.108(a) provides that the tenant may not withhold payment of any portion of the last month’s rent on the ground that the security deposit is security for unpaid rent. Section 92.108(b) presumes a tenant who violates that section acted in bad faith, and makes a tenant who in bad faith violates it liable to the landlord for an amount equal to three times the rent wrongfully withheld plus the landlord’s reasonable attorney’s fees in a suit to recover the rent. Stating this on the deposit notice at signing is the single most useful line you can add, because most tenants who try it believe it is permitted.
Should the deposit notice ask the tenant for a forwarding address?
Yes, and ask again at move-out. Section 92.107(a) says the landlord is not obligated to return the deposit or give the tenant a written description of damages and charges until the tenant gives the landlord a written statement of a forwarding address for the purpose of refunding the deposit. Section 92.107(b) then makes clear the tenant does not forfeit the right to a refund or to a description of damages and charges merely for failing to give one. So the address suspends your duty; it does not extinguish the tenant’s right. Building the request into the notice, with a line for the tenant to update it, keeps the point on the record from day one.
Can my lease require advance notice of move-out before I refund the deposit?
It can, but only if it is drafted conspicuously. Tex. Prop. Code § 92.103(b) provides that a requirement that a tenant give advance notice of surrender as a condition for refunding the security deposit is effective only if the requirement is underlined or printed in conspicuous bold print in the lease. A notice-of-intent clause buried in ordinary body text simply does not bite, and relying on one to justify keeping the deposit walks straight into the § 92.109 penalties. Check the formatting of the clause in the lease you are actually signing, not the formatting in the template you copied it from.
I am selling the property. Who is responsible for the tenant’s deposit?
Section 92.105(a) provides that where the owner’s interest is terminated by sale, assignment, death, appointment of a receiver, or otherwise, the new owner is liable for the return of security deposits under the subchapter from the date title is acquired. Section 92.105(b) requires the new owner to deliver to the tenant a signed statement acknowledging the acquisition and the responsibility for the deposit, specifying the exact dollar amount. Under § 92.105(b-1) the former owner stays liable for a deposit received while they owned the property until the new owner has received it or assumed the liability, unless the parties agree otherwise in a written contract. Section 92.105(c) excepts a mortgage lienholder acquiring title by foreclosure.
Does the subchapter apply to every residential lease, including oral ones?
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.101 states that the subchapter applies to all residential leases. There is no carve-out for a short term, a room rental, a family arrangement, or an unwritten agreement, so the § 92.103(a) thirty-day refund clock, the § 92.104 deduction and itemisation rules, and the § 92.109 penalties travel with the deposit whether or not anything was signed. That breadth is exactly why a written deposit notice is worth issuing even where the tenancy itself is informal: it is often the only contemporaneous record of what was paid and why, and § 92.109(c) leaves the landlord to prove the reasonableness of any later retention.
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⚖ Legal Disclaimer
This form is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Security deposit handling is procedurally strict; improper itemization, timing, or notice can result in statutory penalties (in Texas, one hundred dollars plus three times the portion wrongfully withheld plus the tenant’s attorney’s fees under §92.109). For Texas guidance, visit TX Attorney General Consumer Protection and review Texas Property Code Chapter 92. Consult a qualified Texas attorney for high-value disputes.
