Texas · Rental deposit
Getting your security deposit back in Texas
In Texas, a landlord must refund the security deposit, or send a written list of deductions, within 30 days after you surrender the home. But the landlord does not have to pay until you give a forwarding address in writing. A demand letter states that address, disputes the deductions you do not accept and gives a final date to pay. You get the letter in English or Spanish.
The questions, and the documents that come with the letters (checklist, timeline, next steps and memo), are in English. The letters can be written in English or Spanish.
The rules your letter follows
Taken from the official sources listed below. Interest rates change from time to time; these are the current ones.
- Landlord's period after you surrender the home
- 30 days
- To refund the deposit or give a written, itemized list of deductions. A refund or list mailed with a postmark by the last day is presumed on time.
- Your forwarding address
- In writing
- The landlord has no duty to refund until you give it. Not giving it does not make you lose the deposit. The letter states it.
- Bad faith
- Presumed after the period
- If the landlord neither refunds nor itemizes in time. A landlord who keeps a deposit in bad faith is liable for a fixed sum, a multiple of the amount wrongfully withheld and your reasonable attorney's fees.
- Final date the letter gives
- 14 days
- You can choose up to 30 days.
- Justice Court
- Up to $20,000
- Small claims cases, without an attorney. Filed in the county and precinct the court rules allow, such as where the landlord lives.
- How to send it
- Certified mail
- Return receipt requested, with a copy by first-class mail and by email. The receipt proves the date it arrived.
What Texas law says about the deposit
The landlord must refund the deposit within 30 days after you surrender the home, with a written description and itemized list of any deductions. That duty starts only once you have given a forwarding address in writing. If you have not given one yet, this letter gives it, and then it does not say the landlord's period has passed.
Normal wear and tear cannot be deducted, and the landlord has to prove that keeping any part of the deposit was reasonable. A landlord who neither refunds nor itemizes in time is presumed to have acted in bad faith. Notices about the deposit may also go by email where you and the landlord have emailed each other before.
What the letter does
It states the tenancy, the deposit and the date you surrendered the home, and gives your forwarding address in the body of the letter. It disputes each deduction you do not accept, asks for the deposit by a clear date, and mentions what the statute says about bad-faith retention. It never says the deposit can stand in for the last month's rent: a tenant who withholds rent on that ground is liable to the landlord.
If the landlord still does not pay
Claims up to $20,000 go to the Justice Court as small claims cases. You can file without an attorney and without a prior demand; the filing fee is set by state law and the fee for serving the landlord by the county. The escalation memo in the Complete pack describes this and the other routes; it does not tell you which one to take.
Where the rules come from
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.103Obligation to refund the deposit
checked October 7, 2026
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.107Forwarding address requirement
checked October 7, 2026
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.109Bad-faith retention: liability
checked October 7, 2026
What is in the envelope
Word and PDF files you can edit before you send anything.
- 01
Demand letter
The formal letter, in the language you choose, with your amount and payment details. The deadline, and any interest and costs, follow the local rules.
- 02
Evidence checklist
What to keep and what to enclose, checked against the files you uploaded.
- 03
Timeline
Your dispute date by date, including the dates still to come.
- 04
Next steps
How to send the letter so you can prove it arrived, and what to do with each kind of reply.
- 05
Final DemandComplete
A shorter second letter with a last deadline, for when the first one passes.
- 06
Escalation memoComplete
Court, collection agencies and lawyers: what each route involves. It describes the options; it does not choose one for you.
How it works
Today
You answer the questions. It takes about ten minutes, and your answers are saved as you go.
Today
You check the summary and pay. A few minutes later your documents are ready, in Word and PDF.
When you are ready
You sign the letter and send it yourself, so it comes from you.
Questions
How long does a Texas landlord have to return the deposit?
30 days after you surrender the home, but only once you have given a forwarding address in writing. Until then the landlord has no duty to refund, although you do not lose the deposit.
Can I use my deposit as the last month's rent?
No. A tenant who withholds the last month's rent on the ground that the deposit covers it is liable to the landlord. The letter does not suggest it.
What if the landlord kept the deposit in bad faith?
A landlord who keeps a deposit in bad faith is liable for a fixed sum, a multiple of the amount wrongfully withheld and your reasonable attorney's fees in a suit to recover it. Bad faith is presumed if the landlord neither refunds nor itemizes in time.
What does it cost?
$49 for the Standard pack and $79 for Complete, plus sales tax where it applies. You pay once.
P.S.
Your documents are written by an AI system and checked automatically against your answers and the local rules. No lawyer reviews them. They are document drafts and general information, not legal advice. Your answers are deleted 30 days after delivery, or sooner if you ask.
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