How much a landlord can charge, and which deductions are actually legal
This page covers how much a landlord may charge in Alabama, and which deductions from a residential deposit are lawful. It assumes the tenancy has ended and the question is what may be withheld.
It does not cover:
One month's periodic rent (pets, tenant-requested changes to the premises, and increased liability risks may justify additional deposits outside the cap) — § 35-9A-201(a).
Caps frequently carry exceptions — smaller landlords, furnished units, or pets are treated differently in most states. Read the provision itself rather than relying on the headline figure.
| Claimed deduction | Permitted in Alabama |
|---|---|
| Accrued (unpaid) rent | Permitted, if substantiated |
| Damages suffered by the landlord from the tenant's noncompliance with § 35-9A-301 (beyond ordinary wear and tear) | Permitted, if substantiated |
| Claimed deduction | Permitted in Alabama |
|---|---|
| Ordinary wear and tear | Not permitted |
| Any deduction without the written itemized accounting within 60 days | Not permitted |
| Any amount exceeding one month's rent for a base (non-pet/alteration/risk) deposit | Not permitted |
Whether a specific charge is lawful depends on the facts — how old the damage is, whether the lease addressed it, and whether the landlord can document the cost. A charge being in the "permitted" column does not make it automatically collectable.
The landlord must itemize and justify each deduction in writing within 60 days. Deductions are limited to accrued rent and damages from the tenant's noncompliance with § 35-9A-301. Failure to mail a timely refund/accounting triggers double the original deposit (§ 35-9A-201(f)).
In Alabama the burden sits with the landlord. This matters strategically: if the burden is theirs, your task is to request the documentation rather than to prove the deduction wrong. Ala. Code § 35-9A-201 ↗
A landlord who withholds in bad faith may be liable for 2x the full deposit.
If the landlord fails to mail a timely refund or accounting within the 60-day period, the landlord must pay the tenant DOUBLE the amount of the tenant's ORIGINAL deposit. This is a flat doubling of the ORIGINAL deposit (not the amount wrongfully withheld), and carries no bad-faith element.
Ala. Code § 35-9A-201(f) ↗Alabama's § 35-9A-201(f) is unusual: the penalty is a flat doubling of the tenant's ORIGINAL deposit, not of the amount wrongfully withheld. Even if only a small portion was improperly kept, the full original deposit is doubled. No bad-faith finding is required.
Ala. Code § 35-9A-201(f) ↗Unlike most states, Alabama caps the base security deposit at one month's rent. Additional deposits are only lawful for pets, tenant-requested changes, or increased liability risk — each uncapped but requiring a genuine basis.
Ala. Code § 35-9A-201(a) ↗““You never gave me a forwarding address.””
Even without my address, you must still mail the refund or accounting to my last known address (or the property address). A deposit only becomes forfeited if I leave it unclaimed for 90 days. That does not excuse your 60-day itemization obligation.
Ala. Code § 35-9A-201(d)
““I deducted for cleaning and damages.””
You must provide an itemized list of withheld amounts within 60 days. If you fail to mail a timely refund or accounting, you owe me double my original deposit under § 35-9A-201(f).
Ala. Code § 35-9A-201(c), (f)
““I charged two months' rent as a deposit.””
Alabama caps the base security deposit at one month's rent. Any excess is only lawful for pets, tenant-requested changes, or increased liability risk — none of which apply here.
Ala. Code § 35-9A-201(a)
Some widely circulated summaries of Alabama deposit law state things the statute does not say. We list the disagreements rather than picking a side silently.
| Source | What it says |
|---|---|
| Many stale secondary sources | 35 days |
| Ala. Code § 35-9A-201(b) (Act 2014-279) | 60 days |
What we follow: 60 days
The 35-day figure comes from the original 2006 act. Act 2014-279 changed it to 60 days (and the forfeiture window from 180 to 90 days). Reporting 35 days understates the tenant's window.
| Source | What it says |
|---|---|
| Generic checklists | 2x the amount wrongfully withheld |
| Ala. Code § 35-9A-201(f) | 2x the ORIGINAL deposit |
What we follow: 2x the original deposit
The statute says "double the amount of the tenant's original deposit," a flat doubling of the full original deposit, not the withheld portion.
Every figure on this page comes from the official text, not from a summary. The table below lists each provision used and the date it was last checked against the source.
| Statute | Last verified | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Ala. Code § 35-9A-201(b) | 2026-10-15 | official text ↗ |
| Ala. Code § 35-9A-201(f) | 2026-10-15 | official text ↗ |
| Ala. Code § 35-9A-201 | 2026-10-15 | official text ↗ |
| Ala. Code § 35-9A-201(a) | 2026-10-15 | official text ↗ |
Primary reference: Ala. Code § 35-9A-201 (Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act). Where the official text and a secondary summary disagree, this page follows the official text and says so. Amendments are recorded on the site changelog.
A self-help letter is the right starting point for a single deposit you can document. Get legal help if:
Local legal aid organisations and tenant unions offer free help for qualifying cases. They are independent of this site — we list them because they are the right place to go, not because they link here.
Alabama Security Deposit Return
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The statute does not permit deductions for: ordinary wear and tear; any deduction without the written itemized accounting within 60 days; any amount exceeding one month's rent for a base (non-pet/alteration/risk) deposit.
The landlord. The landlord must itemize and justify each deduction in writing within 60 days. Deductions are limited to accrued rent and damages from the tenant's noncompliance with § 35-9A-301. Failure to mail a timely refund/accounting triggers double the original deposit (§ 35-9A-201(f)).
One month's periodic rent (pets, tenant-requested changes to the premises, and increased liability risks may justify additional deposits outside the cap) — § 35-9A-201(a).
No. Ordinary wear and tear