Under Texas Property Code Chapter 92, Subchapter C, a landlord must refund a residential security deposit on or before the 30th day after the tenant surrenders the premises. If the landlord retains any portion of the deposit, the landlord generally must provide the tenant with the remaining balance, if any, and a written description and itemized list of deductions. A narrow exception applies when the tenant owes undisputed rent at surrender, but the operational rule that avoids trouble is to send an itemization in every case. That duty is not triggered until the tenant provides a written forwarding address, and no part of the deposit may be kept to cover normal wear and tear. Once the tenant has surrendered possession and provided a written forwarding address, failure to return the deposit or provide the required accounting within the applicable 30-day period creates a statutory presumption of bad faith — which puts $100, three times the wrongfully withheld amount, and the tenant's attorney's fees on the table.
This guide is educational and not legal advice. Owners should consult a qualified Texas attorney about a specific deposit dispute.
Most deposit fights are not really about the law. They are about evidence. The statute gives the landlord clear duties, a short window to perform them, and the burden of proving the retention was reasonable. Dated condition evidence, a signed move-in report, reliable invoices, and a timely itemization materially strengthen the landlord's position. A claim based primarily on recollection is much harder to prove.
Who these rules apply to
Section 92.101 applies Subchapter C to all residential leases, and Section 92.002 limits Chapter 92 to the residential landlord-tenant relationship. Subchapter C applies broadly to residential leases of dwellings used as permanent residences, including ordinary single-family, duplex, condominium, and apartment tenancies across Dallas, Tarrant, Collin, and Denton counties, on any lease form. Different rules may govern commercial leases, transient lodging, manufactured-home communities, and other specialized arrangements.
Section 92.001(3) defines a lease as any written or oral agreement establishing the terms of use and occupancy, so a handshake deal on a rent house in Garland does not escape Subchapter C. There is no small-landlord exemption, and these are state rules rather than city rules — the obligations are identical in Frisco, Arlington, and Fort Worth.
For the wider picture, see Texas landlord laws DFW rental owners should know.
What counts as a security deposit under Texas law
Section 92.102 defines a security deposit as any advance of money, other than a rental application deposit or an advance payment of rent, that is intended primarily to secure performance under a lease of a dwelling.
That is broader than most owners expect, and the label is not conclusive. A court would likely examine the payment's actual purpose and operation. An upfront amount collected primarily to protect against damage, unpaid obligations, or other lease nonperformance may be treated as a security deposit even if the lease calls it a fee. Owners get into trouble inventing categories — a "nonrefundable damage deposit," a "move-out fee" at signing — and assuming the name by itself exempts the money from the accounting rules.
Two related provisions are worth knowing. Section 92.111 permits a landlord to offer a recurring fee instead of a conventional security deposit, but the statute imposes detailed disclosure, election, termination, insurance, claim-notice, and documentation requirements. The tenant must retain the option to pay a conventional deposit, and some fee structures may still be treated as security deposits. Use an attorney-reviewed agreement and operational process rather than improvising. Section 92.1031 separately restricts what you may keep from a tenant who signs but never occupies, where a satisfactory replacement tenant occupies on or before the lease commencement date.
What starts the 30-day clock?
Section 92.103(a) requires the refund on or before the 30th day after the date the tenant surrenders the premises. Section 92.109(d) frames the same deadline as the 30th day after the tenant surrenders possession.
Surrender, not the lease end date. This distinction costs DFW owners money every year. A tenant who fully vacates, removes the household's property, returns all access devices, communicates surrender, and has that possession accepted by the landlord may have surrendered before the contractual lease-end date. Because surrender can be fact-dependent, document both the tenant's delivery of possession and the landlord's acceptance. Calendar from the lease end date instead of the surrender date and you may be days late without knowing it.
Two mechanics matter. First, mailing counts: Section 92.1041 presumes the refund or accounting was made on time if it is placed in the United States mail and postmarked on or before the required date. Postmark, not delivery — a strong reason to mail the itemization and check together and keep the receipt. Second, Section 92.103(b) makes a requirement that the tenant give advance notice of surrender, as a condition for refunding the deposit, effective only if it is underlined or printed in conspicuous bold print in the lease.
What is the forwarding-address condition?
Section 92.103(a) begins "Except as provided by Section 92.107," and Section 92.107(a) is where the condition lives: the landlord is not obligated to return the deposit or give a written description of damages and charges until the tenant gives the landlord a written statement of the tenant's forwarding address for the purpose of refunding the deposit.
Owners routinely misread this as a forfeiture rule. It is not. Section 92.107(b) states that the tenant does not forfeit the right to a refund, or to a description of damages and charges, merely for failing to give a forwarding address. The silence delays your obligation; it does not convert the deposit into income.
So make the address easy to prove. Ask for it in writing at notice-to-vacate, again at the move-out appointment, and again when keys are returned. Obtain the forwarding address in a durable written form. Depending on the parties' prior communications and any designated email address, an email may qualify under Section 92.113. Preserve the full message and the date received, then calendar day 30 from surrender. If no address ever arrives, do not spend the money and do not close the file.
Section 92.113, effective September 1, 2025, permits notice under Subchapter C to be sent by e-mail if the tenant and the landlord or the landlord's agent have previously communicated by e-mail.
Do not treat that as a substitute for the mail. Email may be an authorized delivery method under Section 92.113, but Section 92.1041's express presumption concerns United States mail and a timely postmark. Until the treatment of email proof is well established, landlords should preserve complete transmission records and may still prefer mailing the accounting and refund by a traceable method. The safest standardized process is to send both — email the accounting for speed and a delivery record, and mail the accounting and refund check so the postmark presumption is available.
What can you actually deduct?
Section 92.104(a) allows the landlord, before returning a deposit, to deduct damages and charges for which the tenant is legally liable under the lease or as a result of breaching the lease.
Two words carry the weight: legally liable. The strongest deduction usually rests on clear lease language, proof of breach or tenant-caused damage, reliable condition evidence, and a reasonable documented amount. Not every recoverable damage item must be stated as a predetermined fee in the lease, but the tenant must be legally responsible for it. A lease that sets a yard-maintenance standard makes a landscaping cleanup charge easier to prove; a lease silent on cleaning does not automatically defeat a charge for tenant-caused filth, but it does put more weight on the condition evidence. Section 92.104(b) then sets the hard limit: the landlord may not retain any portion of a deposit to cover normal wear and tear.
On cleaning specifically, clear lease standards improve predictability, but the ultimate issue is whether the tenant is legally liable for an actual condition or charge. Avoid automatic cleaning deductions unsupported by the documented move-in and move-out condition.
How does Texas define normal wear and tear?
Section 92.001(4) defines "normal wear and tear" as deterioration that results from the intended use of a dwelling. The definition expressly excludes deterioration that results from negligence, carelessness, accident, or abuse of the premises, equipment, or chattels by the tenant, by a member of the tenant's household, or by a guest or invitee of the tenant. (The same definition adds that, for purposes of Subchapters B and D, the term includes breakage or malfunction due to age or deteriorated condition — an inclusion the statute ties to those subchapters rather than to the deposit subchapter.)
The test is causation, not cost. Deterioration from living in the home the way it is meant to be lived in is wear. Deterioration from carelessness, an accident, neglect, or abuse is chargeable damage. Deterioration from the passage of time on a finish already partway through its useful life is very hard to charge to a resident — and that is where good deductions go bad. A carpet that was seven years old at move-in has little remaining value to destroy, so charging full replacement cost invites the argument that you upgraded the property at the resident's expense.
Proration based on documented age, condition, expected useful life, and remaining value is often more defensible than charging full replacement cost. Texas law does not provide a universal carpet depreciation schedule, so the landlord should use reasonable, supportable evidence rather than an arbitrary number. The same caution applies to paint, appliances, flooring, blinds, and landscaping: there is no statutory table to point to, and a number that cannot be tied to documented age and condition is a number the landlord has to defend from scratch.
Common deduction categories and how well they hold up
| Category | Typically defensible when | Weak or indefensible when |
|---|---|---|
| Unpaid rent and late fees | The ledger shows the balance and the lease sets the charges | The ledger is inconsistent or the fee has no lease basis |
| Cleaning | The lease sets a cleaning standard and you hold dated before-and-after photos plus an invoice | The home was not documented as clean at move-in, or it is a flat fee with no scope |
| Carpet damage | Stains, burns, or pet damage are photographed and the charge is prorated against documented age | The carpet is worn along traffic paths, or full replacement is charged regardless of age |
| Wall damage and paint | Holes, gouges, or unapproved colors are photographed and repaired with an invoice | The charge is for repainting the whole home after ordinary scuffing |
| Missing items | Move-in inventory lists the item and it is documented as absent at move-out | No inventory exists and the claim rests on recollection |
| Appliance repair | The failure traces to misuse and the vendor's diagnosis says so in writing | The appliance failed from age, with no diagnosis separating misuse from wear |
| Landscaping and yard | The lease assigns yard care and photos show the decline | Yard care was never assigned in writing |
Deductions survive when three things line up: a lease provision, dated visual evidence of the change in condition, and a document showing the amount. They collapse when any one is missing.
What does the itemization have to contain?
Section 92.104(c) requires that if the landlord retains all or part of a deposit, the landlord shall give the tenant the balance, if any, together with a written description and itemized list of all deductions.
The statute states one exception. Under Section 92.104(c)(1)-(2), no description and itemized list is required if the tenant owes rent when he surrenders possession and there is no controversy concerning the amount owed. That is narrower than owners want: it requires both conditions, and any dispute removes it. Treating it as a general escape hatch is how owners end up inside Section 92.109(b).
A defensible itemization letter is short and specific — the resident's name, the property address, the surrender date, and the deposit held; each deduction on its own line with a plain description of the condition rather than a category label ("repair three drywall holes in the primary bedroom, patched and painted" beats "wall repair"); the amount for each line with the invoice attached; the arithmetic from deposit held to balance refunded; and a refund check enclosed, postmarked by day 30.
Attach invoices, receipts, estimates, photographs, or other supporting documents when available. Although the statute principally requires a written description and itemized list, supporting records make the accounting more credible and easier to defend.
Send it even when the deductions consume the entire deposit. The duty attaches to the deductions, not to the refund.
What are the penalties for getting it wrong?
Section 92.109 is the enforcement section, and it has teeth.
Bad-faith retention. Section 92.109(a): a landlord who in bad faith retains a deposit in violation of Subchapter C is liable for the sum of $100, three times the portion wrongfully withheld, and the tenant's reasonable attorney's fees.
Bad-faith failure to itemize. Section 92.109(b): a landlord who in bad faith does not provide a written description and itemized list of damages and charges forfeits the right to withhold any portion of the deposit and the right to sue the tenant for damages to the premises, and is liable for the tenant's attorney's fees. A bad-faith failure to provide the required itemization can forfeit the landlord's right to retain the deposit and to sue for damages to the premises. It should not be described broadly as automatically eliminating every possible debt claim — Section 92.109(b) is directed at damages to the premises, and unpaid rent, utilities, or other contractual debt may survive — but losing the damage claim alone is severe enough to make the letter non-optional.
Burden of proof. Section 92.109(c): in a tenant's suit under the subchapter, the landlord has the burden of proving the retention was reasonable. You prove your charges were right; the tenant does not have to prove they were wrong.
The presumption. Section 92.109(d): a landlord who fails either to return a deposit or to provide a written description and itemization on or before the 30th day after surrender of possession is presumed to have acted in bad faith.
The arithmetic is what makes owners pay attention. If the entire $2,400 deposit were found to have been wrongfully retained in bad faith, the statutory exposure could include $100, three times the wrongfully withheld portion — up to $7,200 in that example — and reasonable attorney's fees. Missing the deadline creates a presumption of bad faith, but the ultimate calculation depends on the amount wrongfully withheld and the facts. Against that, mailing a letter on time is a rounding error. The statute does cut both ways — Section 92.108 imposes a parallel bad-faith penalty on a tenant who withholds the last month's rent because the deposit supposedly covers it.
Can a lease waive any of this?
No. Section 92.006(a) provides that a landlord's duty or a tenant's remedy concerning security deposits, as provided by Subchapter C, may not be waived.
That disposes of a long list of clauses found in old lease forms and internet templates: language shortening the accounting period, waiving the itemization, or making the landlord's determination final. A signature does not rescue an unwaivable duty.
Nor does the label. A landlord cannot convert a security deposit into a nonrefundable payment merely by calling it that. Separately stated fees may be enforceable when they are accurately characterized, lawful, and not collected primarily to secure lease performance.
So stop looking for lease language that reduces the obligation and start using language that supports your deductions — a defined cleaning standard, a stated yard-care duty, an inventory of items provided with the home, and a clear move-out procedure. Those provisions are enforceable, and they are what makes Section 92.104(a) work for you.
Rules that catch DFW owners by surprise
Selling the property. Section 92.105(a) makes the new owner liable for the return of security deposits from the date title is acquired, and Section 92.105(b) requires the new owner to give the tenant a signed statement acknowledging that responsibility and the exact dollar amount. Section 92.105(c) contains a specific exception for a mortgage lienholder that acquires title by foreclosure, so foreclosure transfers require separate analysis. Section 92.105(b-1) keeps the former owner liable for a deposit received while they owned the property until the new owner receives it or assumes the liability. The buyer and seller may allocate deposit responsibility between themselves by written contract, but the closing documents should not be assumed to eliminate rights the tenant has under applicable law. Transfer the funds explicitly at closing.
No deposit collected. If no security deposit was required and the landlord intends to report a claim to a consumer reporting agency or third-party debt collector, Section 92.110 generally requires written notice by the reporting date. The statute excuses that notice when the tenant has not provided the required forwarding address. Skipping the notice when it is required forfeits the right to collect those damages and charges.
Records, and what Chapter 92 does not require. Section 92.106 requires accurate records of all deposits. Chapter 92 itself does not impose a statewide deposit cap, require an owner-landlord to use a separate escrow account, or require payment of interest. However, a licensed Texas real-estate broker that accepts or holds a tenant's security deposit is subject to TREC trust-money rules, including segregation from operating funds, designated trust-account requirements, recordkeeping, and accounting obligations. Under 22 TAC Section 535.146, security deposits are trust money: the broker holds them in a fiduciary capacity, must place them in a designated trust account or deliver them to an authorized escrow agent — generally by the close of the second working day after receipt, unless the principals agree otherwise in writing — may not commingle them with the broker's own or other non-trust money or hold them in a personal or business operating account, must keep a documentary record of each deposit and withdrawal, and must account to each beneficiary at least monthly when there has been activity.
Interest. Chapter 92 does not independently require interest to be paid on a residential security deposit. If a licensed broker places trust money in an interest-bearing trust account, TREC's rules and the parties' written agreement govern the treatment of that interest.
Your manager is your agent. Section 92.112, effective September 1, 2025, makes a managing agent, leasing agent, or resident manager the agent of the landlord for notice under Subchapter C. For purposes of Subchapter C, notice to a covered manager or agent is treated as notice to the landlord. A manager's failure to route or act on that notice can expose the landlord to the tenant's statutory claim and may separately create contractual or professional liability between the owner and manager.
Section 92.001(2) separately excludes a manager or agent from the definition of "landlord" unless that person purports to be the owner in the lease. Chapter 92 ordinarily places the statutory landlord obligation on the owner or lessor, but a manager that receives, holds, accounts for, or disburses the deposit may also have contractual, fiduciary, and TREC-regulatory obligations.
The move-in documentation that decides the case
The deposit case is built on the day keys are handed over, not at move-out. Document the property in a dated condition report covering every room, appliance, system, and the exterior — the checklist below has the full scope.
What makes that record usable matters as much as taking it. Timestamp everything, because a folder of undated photos proves less than owners think. Photograph the ordinary, not just the problems: the clean, undamaged wall is what establishes your baseline. Get the resident's signature on the condition form, which turns your record into a shared one. Note pre-existing issues explicitly. And keep the make-ready invoices — proof of what was cleaned, painted, or replaced right before move-in is proof of the starting condition. The DFW rental make-ready checklist covers that standard.
The move-out sequence
Well before the last week. Send written move-out instructions covering the cleaning standard, trash removal, key return, utility transfer, yard condition, filters, and — stated clearly — how to provide a written forwarding address. Most disputes trace back to a resident who did not know what was expected.
At surrender. Confirm in writing the date keys were returned and possession was surrendered. This date drives everything.
Within 24 to 48 hours. Inspect and photograph the vacant home before any vendor touches it, repeating the move-in shot list room by room in the same order. If work begins first, the evidence is gone. No statute sets this window — it is operational best practice, not a legal deadline — but the only statutory deadline that matters runs from surrender, so the evidence has to be collected early.
Immediately after. Order the work and require itemized invoices describing the scope, not just a total. For owner-performed work, use a reasonable and supportable labor value, preserve material receipts and time records, and avoid adding profit, overhead, or a standardized charge without a defensible legal and factual basis.
Well inside 30 days. Mail the itemization and refund check together and keep proof of the postmark. Aim to be in the mail by day 20 so a vendor delay does not push you past the statutory line.
Deposit timeline at a glance
| When | What happens | Statutory anchor |
|---|---|---|
| Before move-in | Document condition, sign the condition form, keep make-ready invoices | No statute; this proves the deduction |
| At lease signing | Deposit collected; any advance-notice-of-surrender condition must be underlined or bold | Sec. 92.102, Sec. 92.103(b) |
| Throughout tenancy | Keep accurate records of all deposits held | Sec. 92.106 |
| Notice to vacate | Request the written forwarding address; send move-out expectations | Sec. 92.107 |
| Day 0 — surrender | The clock starts on surrender, not on the lease end date | Sec. 92.103(a), Sec. 92.109(d) |
| Days 1-2 | Move-out inspection and photos, before any vendor work | No statute; evidence |
| By day 30 | Refund of the balance plus written description and itemized list of deductions, mailed and postmarked | Sec. 92.103(a), Sec. 92.104(c), Sec. 92.1041 |
| After day 30, nothing sent | Presumption of bad faith; $100 + three times the amount wrongfully withheld + fees | Sec. 92.109(a), (d) |
Common owner mistakes
Calendaring from the lease end date. The deadline runs from surrender. Early move-outs quietly shorten your window.
Waiting for the forwarding address before doing any work. The address controls when you must perform, not when you may prepare. Inspect and document on schedule regardless.
Sending a total instead of an itemization. "Deposit applied to damages — $1,850" is not a written description and itemized list. Section 92.109(b) is where that letter leads.
Charging full replacement cost for aged components. Billing an eight-year-old carpet entirely to the resident reads as an upgrade funded by the deposit, and it undermines every other line in the letter.
Deducting for conditions with no lease hook. Charges for cleaning, yard care, or filters the lease never assigned to the resident are the easiest ones to strike.
Doing the work before photographing it. The most common irreversible error. Once the painter has been through the house, the damage no longer exists to be proven, and estimates produced afterward with no invoice look invented.
Letting the file live in text messages. Anything that matters should be a dated document in one place, not a phone thread you reconstruct eight months later.
The move-out documentation checklist
Use this as the file you would hand to an attorney if the deduction were challenged.
Condition evidence
- Signed move-in condition report covering walls and paint, flooring in every room and closet, counters and cabinets, each appliance by make and model, plumbing, HVAC and filters, windows and locks, alarms, garage and fencing, and landscaping
- Dated move-in photos of every room, appliance, and the exterior
- Make-ready invoices from immediately before move-in
- Dated move-out photos taken before any vendor entered, in the same room order
Paper trail
- The signed lease and every addendum, with the cleaning, yard, and inventory provisions identified
- Notice to vacate, your written move-out instructions, and the maintenance history
- Written record of the surrender date and key return
- The tenant's written forwarding address, with the date received
Financials
- Resident ledger showing rent, charges, and payments through surrender
- Itemized vendor invoices describing the scope of each repair, plus receipts and hours for any work you did yourself
- Documentation of age and useful life for any prorated component
The letter
- Written description and itemized list of all deductions, line by line
- Arithmetic from deposit held to balance refunded, refund check enclosed
- Mailed with proof of postmark, on or before day 30
How professional management handles this
The value a manager adds here is not legal interpretation. It is that the deadline is calendared automatically, the evidence exists because collecting it is a standard step rather than a decision, the letter goes out on time because someone owns that task, and the deposit is promptly placed and maintained in the appropriate designated trust account, segregated from operating funds, reconciled, and disbursed only as authorized — the records Section 92.106 requires, handled under the TREC trust-money rules that apply to a licensed broker.
Blue Atlas Realty manages hundreds of DFW rental homes and runs this process the same way on every file. The management fees page lists the full schedule for new clients — 4.9% monthly management, a leasing fee of 50% of one month's rent, a $195 renewal fee, and no maintenance markup. To talk through how your move-out process would hold up against a challenged deduction, start on the owners page, and see rental maintenance expectations for DFW landlords.
Sources
- Texas Property Code, Chapter 92 — Residential Tenancies — Sec. 92.001 (definitions, with "normal wear and tear" at Sec. 92.001(4)), Sec. 92.002 (application), and Sec. 92.006 (waiver or expansion of duties and remedies). Accessed July 2026.
- Texas Property Code, Chapter 92, Subchapter C — Security Deposits — Sections 92.101 through 92.113: the obligation to refund, retention and accounting, the postmark presumption, cessation of the owner's interest, records, the tenant's forwarding address, liability of the landlord, and notice when no deposit was collected. Accessed July 2026.
- Texas Constitution and Statutes — the official statute site, which states its statutes are current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025. Accessed July 2026.
- 22 Texas Administrative Code Sec. 535.146 — Maintaining Trust Money — the TREC rule defining trust money to include security deposits and rent, requiring a designated trust account or delivery to an authorized escrow agent, setting the second-working-day deposit standard absent a written agreement of the principals, prohibiting commingling with the broker's own or other non-trust money, and imposing documentary-record, monthly-accounting, and interest-bearing-account requirements. Accessed July 2026.
- Texas Real Estate Commission — trust account and escrow guidance — TREC's own guidance on a broker holding a security deposit for a managed property, citing Rule 535.146. Accessed July 2026.
- Texas Real Estate Commission — License Holder Search — verify the license status of any broker or agent managing your Texas rental. Accessed July 2026.