Texas security deposit return

(a) Except as provided by Section 92.107, the landlord shall refund a security deposit to the tenant on or before the 30th day after the date the tenant surrenders the premises.

The "later of" framing is our combined reading, not statutory text: § 92.103(a) keys the 30-day clock to surrender alone ("except as provided by Section 92.107"), while § 92.107 separately suspends the duty until a written forwarding address is received. Texas case law supports running the operative window from the written-address date (Ackerman v. Little, 679 S.W.2d 70 (Tex. App.—Dallas 1984, no writ)). "Surrender" is undefined and litigated (key return vs. lease end vs. abandonment). The 30 days are calendar days; if day 30 falls on a weekend or Texas legal holiday, the Code Construction Act (Gov’t Code § 311.014(b)) likely extends it to the next business day. Separately, § 92.103(c): the tenant’s claim to the deposit takes priority over the claim of any creditor of the landlord, including a trustee in bankruptcy. The deposit is the tenant’s money first, even if the landlord owes creditors.

(a) The landlord is not obligated to return a tenant’s security deposit or give the tenant a written description of damages and charges until the tenant gives the landlord a written statement of the tenant’s forwarding address for the purpose of refunding the security deposit. (b) The tenant does not forfeit the right to a refund of the security deposit or the right to receive a description of damages and charges merely for failing to give a forwarding address to the landlord.

The forwarding address must be WRITTEN; oral notice does not trigger the duty.

(a) Before returning a security deposit, the landlord may deduct from the deposit damages and charges for which the tenant is legally liable under the lease or as a result of breaching the lease. (b) The landlord may not retain any portion of a security deposit to cover normal wear and tear.

A valid deduction must meet BOTH halves of § 92.104(a): the charge must be one the tenant is liable for under the lease or for breaching it, AND it must not be for normal wear and tear (§ 92.104(b)). The damage-vs-normal-wear line is the single most litigated issue, and the tool never classifies a specific deduction for the user. On scope: the § 92.001 definitions open "in this chapter," so the core "normal wear and tear" definition applies chapter-wide, including § 92.104; only the inclusion clause "breakage or malfunction due to age or deteriorated condition" is expressly tied to Subchapters B and D. § 92.104(b)'s bar stands on its own regardless.

(c) If the landlord retains all or part of a security deposit under this section, the landlord shall give to the tenant the balance of the security deposit, if any, together with a written description and itemized list of all deductions. The landlord is not required to give the tenant a description and itemized list of deductions if: (1) the tenant owes rent when he surrenders possession of the premises; and (2) there is no controversy concerning the amount of rent owed.

No statutory format or photo-documentation requirement for the itemized list in Texas.

(a) The tenant may not withhold payment of any portion of the last month’s rent on grounds that the security deposit is security for unpaid rent. (b) A tenant who violates this section is presumed to have acted in bad faith. A tenant who in bad faith violates this section is liable to the landlord for an amount equal to three times the rent wrongfully withheld and the landlord’s reasonable attorney’s fees in a suit to recover the rent.

This is the only tenant-facing penalty in subchapter C. It does not relieve the landlord of the duty to account for the actual deposit on time; treat the skipped rent as an ordinary unpaid-rent charge the tenant owes.

A security deposit is any advance of money, other than a rental application deposit or an advance payment of rent, that is intended primarily to secure performance under a lease of a dwelling that has been entered into by a landlord and a tenant.

Verbatim for the § 92.102 definition and its exclusions (application deposit, advance rent). Synthesized: that a refundable pet deposit functions as a security deposit. The point that a charge labeled a "fee" but used to secure performance is still a security deposit is anchored in the statute, not a named case: § 92.102 (money "intended primarily to secure performance") and § 92.111(g) (a fee in lieu of a deposit "is a security deposit for purposes of this chapter," except the insurance-coverage carve-out in § 92.111(h)). Application deposits are governed by §§ 92.351–92.354, not subchapter C.

Confirmed by negative search across subch. C (§§ 92.101–92.113). No interest, escrow, or separate-account requirement exists. A lease could contractually require interest.