What can a landlord deduct from a security deposit in Texas?
By Andrew ChavisUpdated September 6, 20265 min readA Texas landlord can deduct actual damages beyond normal wear and tear, unpaid rent, and other charges the lease specifically allows. Normal wear and tear is never deductible under Texas Property Code §92.104(b). The deposit, or the balance with a written itemized list of deductions, must go back to the tenant within 30 days of surrender (§92.103), and bad-faith withholding costs the landlord $100 plus three times the amount wrongfully withheld plus the tenant's attorney fees (§92.109). We manage move-outs on this exact framework every month, and the landlords who get burned are almost never the dishonest ones. They are the ones who missed a deadline or charged for aging.
Deductible vs. Not: The Line Texas Law Draws
Deductible: damage beyond normal use, unpaid rent, and charges the lease specifically authorizes. Think broken blinds, pet stains, holes in doors, a unit left needing trash-out. Not deductible: normal wear and tear, meaning deterioration from ordinary use. Faded paint, worn carpet in traffic paths, small nail holes from hanging pictures. The test is simple to say and hard to apply honestly: did the tenant damage it, or did it just age while they lived there? Charging to repaint a unit that aged is the classic way landlords lose a deposit dispute they thought they would win.
The Statute Defines Normal Wear and Tear, So Use Its Words
Owners argue about wear and tear as if it were a matter of opinion. Chapter 92 defines it. Normal wear and tear means deterioration that results from the intended use of a dwelling, including breakage or malfunction due to age or deteriorated condition, and it does not include deterioration that results from negligence, carelessness, accident, or abuse of the premises, equipment, or chattels by the tenant, a member of the tenant's household, or a guest or invitee (Tex. Prop. Code Sec. 92.001(4), pulled September 6, 2026). Two things in that sentence decide most disputes. First, breakage from age is wear even when it happens on the tenant's watch: a fifteen-year-old garbage disposal that dies in month ten is the landlord's. Second, the exclusion runs to accident, not just abuse: a dropped skillet that chips the sink is the tenant's even though nobody meant it. Write the deduction line in the statute's vocabulary, intended use versus negligence, carelessness, accident, or abuse, and the itemized list under Sec. 92.104(c) reads like the law instead of like a grievance.
The 30-Day Clock Is Strict
Texas Property Code §92.103 requires the landlord to refund the deposit, or return the balance with a written description and itemized list of deductions, on or before the 30th day after the tenant surrenders the property. Miss that window and §92.109 presumes bad faith, with the burden on the landlord to prove any retention was reasonable. This deadline, not dishonesty, is the single most common way self-managing landlords hand money back to a tenant they had legitimate deductions against.
The Forwarding Address Wrinkle
Under §92.107, the landlord is not obligated to refund the deposit or send the itemized list until the tenant gives a written forwarding address. But the statute is explicit that the tenant does not forfeit the refund by failing to provide one. No address means delay, never a windfall. An owner who treats tenant silence as permission to keep the deposit walks straight into the bad-faith penalty. Our practice: request the forwarding address in writing at move-out and log the request, so the clock's start is documented either way.
What Bad Faith Actually Costs
Under §92.109, a landlord who withholds a deposit in bad faith owes the tenant $100 plus three times the amount wrongfully withheld, plus reasonable attorney fees. Bad-faith failure to send the itemized list forfeits the right to withhold anything at all. On a $2,000 deposit, a bad-faith finding can turn a $2,000 disagreement into a $6,100-plus judgment before the attorney fees land.
How We Make Deductions Stick
The move-in file decides the move-out. We photograph every unit before a tenant gets keys, walk the move-out against that record rather than memory, and itemize like someone will read it in court: what it was, what it cost, invoice attached. "Cleaning: $400" is an argument. "Carpet cleaning and repair, two rooms, invoice attached: $385" is a record. If you would rather hand the whole framework to a team that runs it weekly, that is the job.
Common Questions
- 01Can a Texas landlord charge for repainting after a tenant moves out?
- Only if the paint damage goes beyond normal wear. Faded or lightly scuffed paint from ordinary living is normal wear and tear and is not deductible under §92.104(b). Crayon on the walls, unauthorized paint colors, or large gouges are damage and can be charged.
- 02How long does a Texas landlord have to return a security deposit?
- 30 days from the date the tenant surrenders the property, under Texas Property Code §92.103. Missing the deadline creates a presumption of bad faith under §92.109.
- 03What if the tenant never gives a forwarding address?
- The landlord's obligation to refund or itemize is paused until the tenant provides a written forwarding address (§92.107), but the tenant never forfeits the deposit by failing to give one. It is a delay, not a windfall.
- 04Can a landlord deduct for cleaning in Texas?
- Yes, if the unit is left dirtier than ordinary use would leave it and cleaning charges are authorized by the lease. Routine make-ready freshening for the next tenant is the landlord's cost of doing business; a unit left needing a genuine deep clean or trash-out is deductible.
- 05What is the penalty for wrongfully keeping a deposit in Texas?
- Bad-faith retention costs the landlord $100 plus three times the amount wrongfully withheld plus the tenant's reasonable attorney fees under §92.109. Bad-faith failure to provide the itemized list forfeits the right to withhold anything.
- 06How does Texas law define normal wear and tear?
- Deterioration that results from the intended use of a dwelling, including breakage or malfunction due to age or deteriorated condition; it excludes deterioration from negligence, carelessness, accident, or abuse by the tenant, the tenant's household, or a guest (Tex. Prop. Code Sec. 92.001(4)). Wear may never be deducted from the deposit (Sec. 92.104(b)).
Sources
- Texas Property Code Chapter 92, Subchapter C: §92.103 (30-day return), §92.104 (itemized deductions; wear non-deductible), §92.107 (forwarding address), §92.109 (bad-faith liability). Verified against statute 2026-08-04.
- Texas Property Code Sec. 92.001(4), definition of normal wear and tear (official statute, pulled 2026-09-06)
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