Florida Security Deposit Law

Maximum deposit

Florida law sets no limit on the amount of a residential security deposit; the amount is set by the lease (Fla. Stat. § 83.49). (Fla. Stat. § 83.49 (no amount limit))

Return deadline

Return the deposit within 15 days after the lease ends and the tenant vacates if you make no claim; to keep any part, send written notice of the claim by certified mail (or agreed e-mail) within 30 days, then return any balance within 30 days of that notice if the tenant does not object within 15 days (Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(a)-(b)). (Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(a)-(b))

Itemized statement of deductions

To deduct from the deposit, the landlord's written notice must state the amount claimed and the reason for the claim, using the statutory form (Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(a)). (Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(a))

Interest on the deposit

Interest is not required if you keep the deposit in a separate non-interest-bearing Florida bank account, but it is owed if you use an interest-bearing account (75% of the account rate or 5% simple) or post a surety bond (5% simple) (Fla. Stat. § 83.49(1), (9)). (Fla. Stat. § 83.49(1)(a)-(c), (9))

Interest is owed only if the landlord holds the deposit in an interest-bearing Florida account (at least 75% of the annualized average rate, or 5% simple per year, at the landlord's election) or posts a surety bond instead (5% simple per year); a separate non-interest-bearing account owes none. Interest due must be paid or credited at least annually (§ 83.49(1), (9)).

Penalty for wrongful withholding

If you do not send the claim notice within 30 days, you forfeit any claim against the deposit and must return it (you may sue separately for damages), and the loser of a deposit lawsuit pays the winner's court costs and attorney fees (Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(a), (c)). (Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)(a), (c), Fla. Stat. § 83.48)

Where the deposit is held

Florida landlords must keep deposits and advance rent in a separate Florida financial-institution account (interest-bearing or not) without commingling, or instead post a surety bond and pay 5% interest (Fla. Stat. § 83.49(1)). (Fla. Stat. § 83.49(1), Fla. Stat. § 83.43(7) (definition of Florida financial institution))

The landlord may not hypothecate or pledge the money until it is due; the bond must be for the total deposits and advance rent held or $50,000, whichever is less (or up to $250,000 filed with the Secretary of State for landlords renting in five or more counties), filed with the circuit court clerk.

Receipt or written notice of the deposit

Within 30 days of receiving a deposit or advance rent (or in the lease itself), a Florida landlord must give written notice naming the depository or the surety bond, saying whether interest is paid, and reproducing the statutory deposit disclosure (Fla. Stat. § 83.49(2)). (Fla. Stat. § 83.49(2))

A new notice is due within 30 days if the landlord changes how or where the deposit is held (bank mergers and renamings excepted); landlords renting fewer than five units are exempt, and the notice may go by e-mail only under the § 83.505 addendum.

Move-in condition checklist

Florida has no statutory move-in inspection or condition-checklist requirement; deposit claims depend only on the 30-day notice-of-claim procedure (Fla. Stat. § 83.49(3)). (Fla. Stat. § 83.49)

Pet deposits

Florida bars charging extra for a service animal and, once an emotional support animal is approved as an accommodation, for that animal too; ordinary pet deposits are otherwise left to the lease because the state sets no deposit cap (Fla. Stat. §§ 413.08(6)(b), 760.27(2)). (Fla. Stat. § 413.08(6)(b), Fla. Stat. § 760.27(2))

§ 413.08(6)(b): a person with a service animal 'may not be required to pay extra compensation for such animal' in housing; § 760.27(2) says the same for an approved emotional support animal; both remain liable for damage.

Nonrefundable fees

Florida's deposit statute does not ban or limit nonrefundable fees; only a fee in lieu of a deposit must be disclosed as nonrefundable if it is (Fla. Stat. §§ 83.49, 83.491(3)(f)). (Fla. Stat. § 83.49, Fla. Stat. § 83.491(3)(f))

Small-landlord exemptions

Florida landlords who rent fewer than five units are excused from the 30-day written notice about where the deposit is held, though they must still follow the account, interest and return rules (Fla. Stat. § 83.49(2)). (Fla. Stat. § 83.49(2))

§ 83.49(2): 'This subsection does not apply to any landlord who rents fewer than five individual dwelling units.' Transient hotel/motel rentals and housing where rent or deposit is regulated by law or a public body fall outside § 83.49 (§ 83.49(4)); chapter 421 housing authorities remain subject to subsections (3), (5) and (6).

Deposit alternatives and installments

A Florida landlord may offer a fee in lieu of a security deposit, but must disclose in writing that the tenant can switch to a regular deposit (including in monthly installments) at any time, and must offer the option to all new tenants on the premises (Fla. Stat. § 83.491). (Fla. Stat. § 83.491)

The signed agreement must fix the fee for the lease term and carry the statutory capitalized disclosure; the landlord must notify the tenant of amounts owed within 30 days after the tenancy and wait 15 more days before claiming against insurance, and may not collect twice from tenant and insurer.