How much a landlord can charge, and which deductions are actually legal
This page covers how much a landlord may charge in Florida, 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:
No more than 2 months’ rent.
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 Florida |
|---|---|
| Actual cost of repairing damage | Permitted, if substantiated |
| Unpaid rent | Permitted, if substantiated |
| Other lawful charges specified in the lease | Permitted, if substantiated |
| Claimed deduction | Permitted in Florida |
|---|---|
| Normal wear and tear | Not permitted |
| Deductions the landlord failed to itemize | Not permitted |
| Deductions supported only by a notice not served by certified mail | 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 state the intent to deduct, the amount, the reasons, and the address for written objection. Missing any one makes the notice defective. If the landlord misses the deadline, all deduction rights are forfeited.
In Florida 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. Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3) ↗
No statutory penalty beyond returning the deposit.
Florida has no multiplier penalty. A landlord who fails to send the deduction notice on time forfeits all deduction rights automatically — no court finding required — and the prevailing party may recover attorney fees.
Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(c) ↗The tenant may recover the landlord's attorney fees.
The prevailing party may recover attorney fees.
Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(c) ↗Florida requires every deduction notice to contain an all-caps warning. Most landlords never write it. Its absence is a procedural defect you can use to argue the notice is invalid — a very cheap check with a surprisingly strong payoff.
Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(b) ↗Many tenants assume that blowing the 15-day objection window ends the matter. It does not — the statute expressly preserves a later suit for a refund; only the burden of proof shifts. This correction directly affects whether the user acts at all.
Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(b) ↗““You missed the 15-day objection window, so the deduction is final.””
The statute expressly provides that even after the window passes, you may still sue for a refund. What changes is the burden of proof — it shifts to you to sue and show the landlord had no basis, rather than the landlord justifying the deduction. This is not final.
Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(b)
““I notified you by email.””
§ 83.49(3)(b) requires certified mail with return receipt requested. Multiple appellate courts have rejected notices that substituted ordinary email for the statutorily required service.
Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(b)
““The notice gave an objection address and you did not object within 15 days.””
Provide proof of the date you actually received the notice. Where the service date is uncertain, the start of the 15-day window is itself the disputed issue.
Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(b)
Some widely circulated summaries of Florida deposit law state things the statute does not say. We list the disagreements rather than picking a side silently.
| Source | What it says |
|---|---|
| Some generic checklists | Return within 30 days |
| Other sources | Return within 15 days |
| Statute text § 83.49(3) | 15 days for full return / 30 days to send itemization (two tracks) |
What we follow: 15 days for full return / 30 days to send itemization (two-track system)
The statute distinguishes two situations: no deductions claimed means full return within 15 days; deductions claimed means the notice must be sent within 30 days. The conflicting sources fail to distinguish these two paths.
| Source | What it says |
|---|---|
| Earlier sources | Certified mail is mandatory |
| Language tied to 2025 amendments | An email option was added |
What we follow: Certified mail with return receipt requested is the statutory requirement
The statutory text expressly requires certified mail with a return receipt. Even if an email option exists, it generally applies only where the landlord’s original notice was also sent by email and both parties had an established electronic-service agreement. Our copy flags the certified-mail standard and recommends the user confirm their case with an attorney.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(a) | 2026-10-04 | official text ↗ |
| Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(b) | 2026-10-04 | official text ↗ |
| Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(c) | 2026-10-04 | official text ↗ |
| Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3) | 2026-10-04 | official text ↗ |
Primary reference: Fla. Stat. § 83.49. 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.
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The statute does not permit deductions for: normal wear and tear; deductions the landlord failed to itemize; deductions supported only by a notice not served by certified mail.
The landlord. The landlord must state the intent to deduct, the amount, the reasons, and the address for written objection. Missing any one makes the notice defective. If the landlord misses the deadline, all deduction rights are forfeited.
No more than 2 months’ rent.
No. Normal wear and tear