Texas requires landlords to return the security deposit within 30 days. This page lists the deadline, the statutory penalty multiplier, the deductions a landlord may lawfully make, and the official statute text — every figure below links to the primary source.
Free. No account, no upload. Figures shown with statute citations.
Measured from vacating the premises and providing a written forwarding address.
Forwarding address provided (clock has started)
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.103(a), Tex. Prop. Code § 92.107(a) ↗Measured from no forwarding address yet — the return clock has not started.
Forwarding address not provided (no forfeiture — clock simply has not started)
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.107(b) ↗The figures below are what a statute authorises. Whether you can actually collect them depends on the facts — a multiplier that requires a court finding is not automatic.
a flat 100 automatically.
A landlord who fails either to return the deposit or to provide a written description and itemization of deductions by the 30th day is presumed to have acted in bad faith (§ 92.109(d)). Once bad faith is established, the $100 is a fixed statutory sum that requires no separate finding.
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.109(a), (d) ↗3x the amount wrongfully withheld, automatically, without needing a court ruling.
Treble damages are calculated on the portion of the deposit wrongfully withheld, NOT on the full deposit — this is the opposite of Pennsylvania’s approach and the two must never be cross-cited. The presumption of bad faith under § 92.109(d) means you generally do not have to prove bad faith yourself: the landlord bears the burden under § 92.109(c) of proving that the retention was reasonable.
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.109(a), (c), (d) ↗attorney's fees automatically.
Reasonable attorney fees are recoverable under both § 92.109(a) and § 92.109(b)(2). Note that in Texas small claims (justice court), attorney representation by a lawyer is generally not permitted for the plaintiff, so in practice this fee is often realized only in district court. Treat it as a real statutory right but not as money you will see in a justice court judgment.
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.109(a), (b)(2) ↗When the landlord provides no written itemization, Texas law gives tenants a strong position: the landlord forfeits the right to withhold any part of the deposit, and forfeits the right to sue you for property damage.
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.109(b) ↗When a landlord acts in bad faith and provides neither a written itemization nor a list of deductions, they simultaneously forfeit: ① the right to withhold any part of the deposit, and ② the right to sue the tenant for property damage — and owe the tenant’s attorney fees. This is the harshest missing-itemization penalty among these five states.
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.109(b) ↗Not providing a written forwarding address does not forfeit your refund, but the 30-day return clock does not start. Providing it is the single easiest step — a note or a certified letter starts the clock.
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.107(b) ↗““You did not give 30 days’ notice, so I’m keeping $500.””
§ 92.103(b) provides that an advance-notice clause binds tenants only when printed underlined or in bold. If the lease contains no such marking, the landlord cannot deduct on that basis. Produce the original lease clause so the marking can be verified.
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.103(b)
““You owed rent at move-out and it was undisputed, so I deducted directly.””
The statute does allow deduction without itemization in that situation. But the amount deducted cannot exceed the actual rent owed and cannot include other items. Provide the precise rent owed and how it was calculated, along with any other deductions taken without itemization.
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.104(c)
““This is normal wear and tear, the deduction was reasonable.””
§ 92.104 expressly prohibits normal wear and tear as a basis for deduction. And if the landlord provided no written itemization, that is bad faith — forfeiting all deduction rights and exposing them to $100 + 3x + attorney fees.
Tex. Prop. Code § 92.104(a)(4), 92.109
Texas small-claims procedure is inexpensive, and § 92.109 expressly allows attorney fees to be awarded.
Public sources conflict on the points below. We state the disagreement rather than hiding it.
When the 30-day clock starts
“Starts when you move out” — Some generic checklists
“Requires a written forwarding address as well” — Statute text Tex. Prop. Code § 92.107
This tool uses Vacate the premises + provide a written forwarding address (late provision does not forfeit rights). The statute expressly conditions this on providing a forwarding address. But § 92.107(b) also provides that failing to provide one does not forfeit the refund right — so we present it as “the clock has not started” rather than “you have lost your rights.”
30 days, counted from vacating the premises and providing a written forwarding address. Tex. Prop. Code § 92.103(a), Tex. Prop. Code § 92.107(a).
3x the amount wrongfully withheld, automatically, without needing a court ruling. Tex. Prop. Code § 92.109(a), (c), (d).
No — Texas small-claims procedure is inexpensive, and § 92.109 expressly allows attorney fees to be awarded.
The statute does not permit deductions for: normal wear and tear (expressly prohibited by § 92.104); last month’s rent (§ 92.108 forbids using the deposit to cover monthly rent); advance-notice requirements that are not underlined or in bold.