How much a landlord can charge, and which deductions are actually legal
This page covers how much a landlord may charge in South Carolina, 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 statutory cap under state law (a landlord may charge whatever amount the lease specifies).
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 South Carolina |
|---|---|
| Accrued (unpaid) rent | Permitted, if substantiated |
| Damages suffered by the landlord from the tenant's noncompliance with § 27-40-510 (beyond ordinary wear and tear) | Permitted, if substantiated |
| Claimed deduction | Permitted in South Carolina |
|---|---|
| Ordinary wear and tear | Not permitted |
| Any deduction without the written itemized notice within 30 days | 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 30 days. Deductions are limited to accrued rent and damages from the tenant's noncompliance with § 27-40-510. Failure to provide the notice exposes the landlord to treble damages plus attorney fees.
In South Carolina 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. S.C. Code § 27-40-410 ↗
A landlord who withholds in bad faith may be liable for 3x the portion wrongfully withheld.
If the landlord fails to return the deposit or provide the required written notice, the tenant may recover an amount equal to THREE times the amount wrongfully withheld, plus reasonable attorney fees. This is a strict statutory treble-damages remedy — no bad-faith finding is required.
S.C. Code § 27-40-410(b) ↗The tenant may recover the landlord's attorney fees.
Reasonable attorney fees are recoverable by statute under § 27-40-410(b), tied to the same noncompliance finding (no separate bad-faith requirement).
S.C. Code § 27-40-410(b) ↗South Carolina's § 27-40-410(b) is among the strongest deposit penalties in the US: a landlord who fails to return the deposit or provide the required itemized notice is liable for THREE times the amount wrongfully withheld, plus reasonable attorney fees — with no bad-faith finding required.
S.C. Code § 27-40-410(b) ↗The 30-day clock runs from termination of the tenancy, delivery of possession, and the tenant's demand — whichever is later. A landlord cannot claim the clock expired before you actually demanded your deposit back.
S.C. Code § 27-40-410(a) ↗““You never gave me a forwarding address.””
You are correct that without my written address you had a defense — but only if you had no notice of my whereabouts AND mailed the notice to my last known address. Here is my address now; the 30-day deadline runs from termination, delivery of possession, and my demand, whichever is later.
S.C. Code § 27-40-410(a)
““I deducted for cleaning and damages.””
You must itemize any deduction in a written notice within 30 days. If you did not, South Carolina law entitles me to three times the amount wrongfully withheld, plus reasonable attorney fees.
S.C. Code § 27-40-410(a), (b)
““I will keep the deposit and you can sue me.””
If you fail to return the deposit or provide the required notice, I can recover three times the amount wrongfully withheld plus attorney fees under § 27-40-410(b) — one of the strongest deposit penalties in the country.
S.C. Code § 27-40-410(b)
Some widely circulated summaries of South Carolina deposit law state things the statute does not say. We list the disagreements rather than picking a side silently.
| Source | What it says |
|---|---|
| Some summaries | 30 days after move-out |
| S.C. Code § 27-40-410(a) | 30 days after termination + possession + demand, whichever is later |
What we follow: Whichever-is-later (termination/possession/demand)
The statute explicitly includes "demand by the tenant" as a trigger and says "whichever is later." Omitting the demand trigger understates the tenant's window.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| S.C. Code § 27-40-410(a) | 2026-10-15 | official text ↗ |
| S.C. Code § 27-40-410(b) | 2026-10-15 | official text ↗ |
| S.C. Code § 27-40-410 | 2026-10-15 | official text ↗ |
Primary reference: S.C. Code § 27-40-410 (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.
South Carolina Security Deposit Return
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The statute does not permit deductions for: ordinary wear and tear; any deduction without the written itemized notice within 30 days.
The landlord. The landlord must itemize and justify each deduction in writing within 30 days. Deductions are limited to accrued rent and damages from the tenant's noncompliance with § 27-40-510. Failure to provide the notice exposes the landlord to treble damages plus attorney fees.
No statutory cap under state law (a landlord may charge whatever amount the lease specifies).
No. Ordinary wear and tear