Georgia Security Deposit Law

Maximum deposit

Landlords may not demand or receive a security deposit (including pet and advance-rent deposits) above the equivalent of two months' rent for leases entered into or renewed on or after July 1, 2024 (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-30.1). (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-30.1 (2024 Ga. Laws Act 392, HB 404 § 4), O.C.G.A. § 44-7-30.1)

Two months' rent

Return deadline

Landlords must return the deposit, or mail a written statement of the exact reasons for any amount kept with the balance, within 30 days after obtaining possession of the unit (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-34(a)). (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-34(a) (2018 Ga. Laws Act 482, HB 834 § 3), O.C.G.A. § 44-7-34(a))

Itemized statement of deductions

Landlords who keep any part of the deposit must give the tenant a written statement of the exact reasons, including the itemized damage list with estimated dollar values when damage is the reason (O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-33(b), 44-7-34(a)). (O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-33, 44-7-34)

Interest on the deposit

Georgia law does not require landlords to pay interest on security deposits, though larger landlords must hold deposits in a dedicated escrow account and tell tenants where it is (O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-30 to 44-7-37). (O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-30 to 44-7-37 (no interest requirement))

Penalty for wrongful withholding

Unless exempt as a small landlord under § 44-7-36, a landlord who wrongfully keeps any part of a deposit owes the tenant three times the amount improperly withheld plus reasonable attorney's fees, or only the amount withheld if the landlord proves an unintentional bona fide error (O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-35(c), 44-7-36). (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-35 (2018 Ga. Laws Act 482, HB 834 § 3), O.C.G.A. § 44-7-35)

Where the deposit is held

Unless exempt as a small owner, a Georgia landlord must keep deposits in a deposits-only escrow account at a state- or federally-regulated bank or lending institution, held in trust for the tenant, or post a surety bond instead (O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-31, 44-7-32). (O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-31, 44-7-32)

A landlord who neither escrows the deposit nor posts the § 44-7-32 bond loses the right to keep any of it (§ 44-7-35(a)); the duty does not apply to individuals owning ten or fewer units who manage them without a paid third party (§ 44-7-36).

Receipt or written notice of the deposit

Georgia tenants must be told in writing where the escrow account holding their deposit is located, unless the landlord qualifies for the ten-unit owner exemption (O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-31, 44-7-36). (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-31)

The statute requires notice of the account's location only; it does not prescribe a timing deadline or a separate cash receipt.

Move-in condition checklist

Before a Georgia tenant pays the deposit, the landlord must hand over a comprehensive list of existing damage, let the tenant inspect the unit to check it, and have both sign it (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-33(a)). (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-33(a))

Skipping the move-in list (together with the escrow and final-list duties) bars the landlord from keeping any deposit (§ 44-7-35(a)); a tenant who disagrees must sign a specific written dissent, and the rule does not bind owners of ten or fewer self-managed units (§ 44-7-36).

Pet deposits

Georgia counts refundable pet deposits as part of the security deposit, so they fall under the two-month cap and the escrow and return rules, while a pet fee the lease labels nonrefundable is not a deposit at all (O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-30(3), 44-7-30.1). (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-30(3), O.C.G.A. § 44-7-30.1 (HB 404, 2024))

The deposit definition expressly 'shall include … pet deposits'; a landlord may deduct unpaid pet fees from the deposit (§ 44-7-34(a)).

Nonrefundable fees

Georgia expressly allows fees the parties agree will not be refunded, and such nonrefundable fees fall outside the security-deposit rules and the two-month cap (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-30(1), (3)). (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-30(1), (3))

A 'nonrefundable fee' is money the parties agreed in the rental agreement would not be refunded; money to be applied to rent or to reimburse services or utilities is likewise excluded from the deposit definition.

Small-landlord exemptions

An individual who, with spouse and minor children, owns ten or fewer rental units and does not pay a third party to manage them is exempt from Georgia's escrow, move-in list, move-out list and treble-damage provisions (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-36). (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-36)

Exempt owners still must respect the two-month cap (§ 44-7-30.1) and the 30-day return-or-explain rule (§ 44-7-34); the exemption is lost for any unit managed, including rent collection, by others for a fee.

Deposit alternatives and installments

Georgia has no statute on tenant-side deposit alternatives such as deposit insurance, waiver fees or installment plans; the only bond in the code is the landlord's own surety bond in place of escrow (O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-30 to 44-7-37). (O.C.G.A. §§ 44-7-30 to 44-7-37)