Security Deposit Refunds in Texas: The Exact Sequence Under § 92.103

Texas Property Code § 92.103 requires a landlord to refund the balance of your security deposit, plus an itemized list of any deductions, within 30 days after you surrender the premises. That clock does not start when you hand over keys. It starts when two things have happened: you have surrendered possession, and the landlord has your forwarding address in writing. Miss either one and the 30-day rule does not apply to you.

Most deposit disputes in San Antonio are not about whether the tenant got a fair deduction. They are about tenants who did the move-out right but skipped a paperwork step, and landlords who know the statute better than their renters do. The sequence below is what gets the check cut, or gets the JP court judgment when it doesn't.

Step 1: Give proper notice to terminate

Your lease will specify notice — typically 30 or 60 days before the end of the term. For month-to-month tenancies, Texas Property Code § 91.001 requires at least one month's written notice, aligned with the rental period.

• Put it in writing. Email counts if the lease allows electronic notice; most modern SABOR-area leases do. A text does not.
• Date it. Keep a copy with proof of delivery (email timestamp, certified mail receipt, or a signed acknowledgment from the office).
• If you are a servicemember on PCS orders out of JBSA-Lackland, JBSA-Randolph, or Fort Sam Houston, invoke the SCRA (50 U.S.C. § 3955) in the notice and attach the orders. Termination is effective 30 days after the next rent due date.

Bad notice is the first place landlords pivot to withhold deposits. A 23-day notice when the lease required 30 gives them a reletting fee or a full month of rent to deduct.

Step 2: Surrender possession correctly

Surrender is a legal term, not just "moving out." Under § 92.014-related case law and standard lease language, you have surrendered when:

• You have removed all personal property, trash included.
• You have returned all keys, gate fobs, garage remotes, mail keys, and pool tags.
• You have vacated by the date stated in your notice or lease end.

Leaving a couch in the garage because it won't fit in the U-Haul is not surrender. It's abandoned property, and the landlord can charge removal and disposal.

In a San Antonio apartment community, surrender usually means turning in keys at the leasing office during business hours and getting a dated receipt. In a single-family rental or a FSBO landlord situation, it means a scheduled handoff — text or email to confirm the date and time, and photograph the keys on the kitchen counter before you leave if you cannot meet in person.

Step 3: Provide a forwarding address in writing

This is the step renters skip, and it is the one that kills the case later. Texas Property Code § 92.107 states:

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.

Read that again. No written forwarding address, no duty to refund. The landlord can sit on your deposit indefinitely and owes you nothing in statutory penalties.

How to do it cleanly:

• Send a short written notice — email is fine if the lease authorizes electronic notice, but certified mail with return receipt is bulletproof.
• Include: your name, the unit address you vacated, the date of surrender, and your new mailing address.
• Send it on or before move-out day. Do not wait for the landlord to ask.

Keep the green certified mail card or the email with timestamp. This single piece of paper is what turns a slow refund into a statutory-penalty case.

Step 4: Document the unit at move-out

The landlord will inspect after you leave. Your job is to have an independent record of what the unit looked like when you walked out.

• Photos and video of every room, floor, wall, appliance interior, bathroom, and the garage or patio. Timestamped.
• Close-ups of anything already noted on your move-in condition form. This is why the move-in walkthrough matters.
• Keep cleaning receipts if you paid a service. If the lease requires professional carpet cleaning, keep that receipt specifically — it's the most common deduction.

Under § 92.104, a landlord can deduct for damage beyond normal wear and tear, unpaid rent, and charges specified in the lease. "Normal wear and tear" is defined in § 92.001(4) as deterioration from intended use, not negligence or abuse. A faded carpet in a three-year tenancy is wear. A red wine stain in the bedroom is damage.

Step 5: The 30-day clock

Once surrender is complete and the landlord has your forwarding address, § 92.103 gives them 30 days — not business days, calendar days — to either:

• Refund the full deposit, or
• Send an itemized written list of deductions plus the remaining balance.

If they kept any portion, the itemization has to be specific. "Cleaning — $350" is not compliant. "Professional carpet cleaning (invoice attached) — $185; refrigerator interior cleaning — $45; patio debris removal — $120" is.

Step 6: If the 30 days pass

This is where § 92.109 becomes your leverage. A landlord who in bad faith retains the deposit is liable for:

• $100,
• Three times the portion of the deposit wrongfully withheld, and
• The tenant's reasonable attorney's fees.

Bad faith is presumed if the landlord fails to return the deposit or provide the itemized list within 30 days (§ 92.109(d)). The burden shifts to them to prove good faith.

The sequence to collect:

1. Demand letter. Send a written demand via certified mail citing §§ 92.103, 92.104, and 92.109. State the amount owed, the date of surrender, the date you provided the forwarding address, and give a deadline — 10 days is reasonable.
2. File in Justice Court. Bexar County has four JP precincts. File in the precinct where the property is located. Small claims jurisdiction goes up to $20,000, well above any residential deposit. Filing fee runs roughly $54 plus service costs; file in person or through eFileTexas.
3. Bring the paper trail. Lease, move-in condition form, move-out photos, notice to vacate, proof of forwarding address, demand letter with certified mail card, and any partial itemization the landlord sent.

JP judges in Bexar County see these cases constantly and move them quickly. A well-documented tenant wins.

What most people get wrong

• Texting the forwarding address. Texts are not "written statements" under most leases and courts. Email if permitted, certified mail always.
• Assuming the lease's "non-refundable cleaning fee" is legal. It can be, but only if the fee is clearly labeled as a fee (not a deposit) in the lease. Any amount called a "deposit" is refundable by default under § 92.102.
• Waiting 60+ days before following up. The longer you wait, the easier it is for the landlord to claim they mailed it to an address you never provided. Send the demand letter at day 31.
• Forgetting that the 30-day clock starts at the later of surrender or forwarding-address delivery. If you vacate March 1 but don't send the address until March 20, the refund is due April 19.
• Signing a move-out inspection form that lists damages you disagree with. Write "Tenant disputes" next to any line you contest before signing, or decline to sign and note that you were not given a copy.
• Not requesting the itemization in the demand letter. Even if you think you owe nothing, demanding both the refund and the itemized list forces the landlord to commit to a position on paper.

One more thing on "normal wear and tear"

Texas courts have been consistent: nail holes from hanging pictures, minor scuffs on walls, light carpet matting in traffic areas, and faded paint are wear. Pet urine, burn marks, broken blinds, unauthorized paint colors, and holes larger than a thumbtack are damage. If you are unsure, photograph it and move on — the itemization will tell you what the landlord thinks, and you can dispute in JP court if needed.

If you are lining up your next place while waiting on a deposit refund, browse current listings at /rentals, or read the rest of the move-in and move-out guides at /resources before you sign the next lease. Getting the paperwork right on the front end is what makes the back end cheap.