California Security Deposit Law: Caps, Deductions & 21-Day Refund

California security deposit law caps most residential deposits at one month’s rent, limits what a landlord can deduct to four specific categories, and requires the landlord to return the balance with an itemized statement within 21 days after you move out. The main rules sit in Civil Code Section 1950.5 and apply to nearly every residential tenancy in the state.¹

How Much a Landlord Can Charge

Since July 1, 2024, most landlords cannot collect a security deposit larger than one month’s rent, whether the unit is furnished or unfurnished.² The cap covers any upfront payment that secures the lease, no matter what the landlord calls it.

A narrow exception lets small landlords charge up to two months’ rent. To qualify, the landlord must be an individual or an LLC whose members are all natural persons, and must own no more than two residential rental properties with a combined total of four or fewer units.

Even a landlord who fits that exception cannot charge a service member more than one month’s rent, and cannot refuse to rent to a service member because of the lower cap.²

No Nonrefundable Fees or Separate Pet Deposits

No part of your deposit can be labeled nonrefundable.³ A “nonrefundable cleaning fee” collected alongside a regular deposit violates the statute, because any upfront charge tied to the tenancy counts as a security deposit. Lease language that tries to make a fee nonrefundable is unenforceable.

The same definition folds a separate pet deposit into the one-month cap. If the landlord already collected a full month as a deposit, they cannot add a pet deposit on top. They can later deduct from the single deposit for actual animal damage beyond normal wear and tear.¹

Assistance animals are different. Under the federal Fair Housing Act, no extra deposit or fee can be charged for a service animal or emotional support animal. The standard deposit can still cover damage the animal causes, but nothing extra can be required upfront.

What a Landlord Can Deduct

California limits deductions to four categories:

Unpaid rent still owed at the end of the tenancy.
Damage beyond normal wear and tear, such as holes in walls, broken fixtures, or stained countertops from misuse. Faded paint, minor scuffs on hardwood, and carpet worn in high-traffic areas do not count.
Cleaning, but only enough to restore the unit to the level of cleanliness it had when you moved in. If it was professionally cleaned before you arrived, the landlord can match that standard; if it was not, they cannot bill you for professional cleaning simply because they prefer it.
Restoring or replacing personal property such as keys, remotes, or appliances when the lease authorized it and the items are missing or damaged beyond ordinary wear.

Deducting for ordinary wear and tear is flatly prohibited.¹ This is where most disputes happen, and judges generally side with tenants when a landlord tries to pass off normal aging as damage. Timestamped move-in photos are the single most effective record you can keep.

The Pre-Move-Out Inspection

Before your tenancy ends, you have the right to request an initial inspection. After either you give notice or the landlord issues a termination notice, the landlord must tell you in writing that this option exists.¹ If you request it, the walkthrough has to happen in the final two weeks of your tenancy, at a time both sides agree on.

The landlord gives you a written list of problems that would justify deductions. You then have whatever time remains before move-out to fix the items yourself, which is almost always cheaper than paying the landlord’s contractor rate. The list is not final, though. The landlord can still deduct for new damage or for issues missed during the walkthrough.

Skipping the inspection costs you the early warning but no other rights. Tenants being removed through an unlawful detainer are not entitled to the inspection at all.³

The 21-Day Refund Rule

After you vacate, the landlord has 21 calendar days to either return your full deposit or send a partial refund with an itemized statement explaining every deduction. The statement must list each charge, identify whether it was for cleaning, repairs, or unpaid rent, and give the dollar amount. Delivery must be by personal delivery or first-class mail to your last known or forwarding address.¹

Receipts When Deductions Top $125

When combined deductions for repairs and cleaning exceed $125, the landlord must attach copies of receipts or invoices for materials and labor.¹ If the landlord or their employees did the work, the statement has to describe what was done, how long it took, and the hourly rate, and that rate must be reasonable. A landlord billing $100 an hour to repaint their own wall will struggle to defend it in court.

If Repairs Run Long

When the work genuinely cannot be finished in three weeks, or a contractor’s invoice has not arrived, the landlord can send a good-faith estimate with the itemized statement at the 21-day mark. Once the work wraps up or the paperwork comes in, the landlord has 14 more calendar days to send a final accounting with actual receipts and refund any difference.¹

Getting Your Deposit Back When a Landlord Withholds It

A landlord who holds your deposit in bad faith faces more than returning the money. A court can award up to twice the deposit amount as statutory damages on top of your actual losses.³ The judge can impose this penalty on the evidence even if you do not specifically ask for it. In any deposit dispute, the landlord carries the burden of proving the withheld amounts were reasonable; you do not have to prove they were not.

If the 21-day deadline passes without a refund or itemized statement, start with a written demand letter sent by certified mail. Give the landlord at least 10 days to respond. Many disputes end here, because most landlords would rather pay than face a bad-faith finding.

If nothing comes back, file in small claims court. California small claims allows individuals to sue for up to $12,500, which covers almost every deposit dispute.⁴ You do not need a lawyer. Bring the lease, move-in and move-out photos, any correspondence, and a copy of your demand letter. The strongest cases are the simplest: the landlord missed the 21-day window, failed to provide receipts, or charged for things that are plainly wear and tear.

When the Building Is Sold

If your landlord sells the property, dies, or transfers their interest, your deposit does not disappear. Within a reasonable time, the outgoing landlord must either transfer the remaining deposit to the new owner and give you the new owner’s name, address, and phone number, or return the deposit directly to you with a full accounting.¹

Before recording a deed in a voluntary transfer, the outgoing landlord also has to give the new owner a written statement showing how much deposit remains for each unit and what has already been deducted.³

If the old landlord does neither, the old and new landlord become jointly and severally liable for the deposit, which means you can go after either one for the full amount. The new owner also cannot demand a replacement deposit to make up for money the previous owner failed to transfer. If a new owner asks for a fresh deposit, you do not owe it unless they first return or properly account for the original.¹

Extra Protection for Service Members

Beyond the California cap of one month’s rent for military tenants, the federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act adds a refund rule of its own. When a service member terminates a residential lease under the SCRA, any rent or deposit paid in advance for the period after termination must be refunded within 30 days.⁵ That federal 30-day clock runs separately from the state’s 21-day deposit return rule.

1
California Legislative Information. California Code Civil Code 1950.5 – Security for Rental Agreement
2
LegiScan. California Assembly Bill 12 – Tenancy: Security Deposits
3
California Legislative Information. California Civil Code 1950.5
4
California Courts. Small Claims in California
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 U.S. Code 3955 – Termination of Residential or Motor Vehicle Leases