Louisiana Security Deposit Law: Limits, Deadlines, and Penalties
What Louisiana landlords can charge, when deposits must be returned, and what it costs to get it wrong. Last reviewed 2026-08-12.
How much can a landlord charge in Louisiana?
Louisiana law places no cap on the size of a residential security deposit. Landlords may charge any amount the market will bear, though one month's rent is the common practice.
Louisiana has no specific pet deposit statute; a refundable pet deposit is treated as part of the security deposit and is subject to the same one-month return and itemization rules.
When must the deposit be returned?
The landlord must return the deposit, or send an itemized statement explaining any retention, within one month after the lease terminates and the tenant vacates. The tenant is required to furnish a forwarding address at the end of the lease so the refund or statement can be sent.
If any portion of the deposit is kept, the landlord must forward an itemized statement within one month accounting for the amounts retained and the reasons for retention (La. R.S. 9:3251).
What happens if a landlord misses the deadline?
Willful failure to comply entitles the tenant to the wrongfully retained portion plus the greater of $300 or twice the amount wrongfully retained. Failure to remit within 30 days after the tenant's written demand automatically constitutes willful failure, and the court may award costs and attorney's fees to the prevailing party.
Interest and holding requirements
Louisiana does not require landlords to pay interest on security deposits.
No statutory requirement. Landlords may commingle deposit funds with their own money; no separate account, escrow, or bond is required.
What Louisiana landlords get wrong
Louisiana's Lessee's Deposit Act is short but has teeth: a tenant's written demand starts a 30-day clock, and missing it makes the failure 'willful' by definition, exposing you to the $300-or-double penalty plus possible attorney's fees. Important exception: the return and itemization duties do not apply if the tenant abandons the premises without giving required notice or before the lease term ends. Deductions are limited to unreasonable wear and amounts actually owed under the lease — document move-in and move-out condition with photos, since the statute gives no inspection procedure.
The law itself
Frequently asked questions
How much can a landlord charge for a security deposit in Louisiana?
There is no legal limit in Louisiana. A landlord can charge any deposit amount the parties agree to in the lease. In practice most Louisiana landlords charge the equivalent of one month's rent, since higher deposits make units harder to fill. Whatever the amount, the same one-month return rule applies when the tenant moves out.
How long does a landlord have to return a security deposit in Louisiana?
One month after the lease terminates and the tenant moves out. Within that month the landlord must either refund the full deposit or send an itemized statement listing what was kept and why. Tenants must leave a forwarding address at move-out; without one, the landlord has nowhere to legally send the refund or statement.
What happens if a Louisiana landlord doesn't return the deposit?
Send a written demand for the refund. If the landlord fails to remit within 30 days of that demand, the failure is willful by law, and you can sue for the wrongfully retained amount plus the greater of $300 or twice the amount withheld. Courts may also award costs and attorney's fees to the winning party. Small claims court handles most of these cases.
Can a Louisiana landlord keep the deposit if the tenant breaks the lease?
Often yes. Louisiana's deposit-return statute does not apply when a tenant abandons the premises before the lease term ends or leaves without giving the notice the lease requires. In that situation the tenant loses the statutory protections, and the landlord can apply the deposit to unpaid rent and damages under the lease's ordinary terms.
Keep reading
Deposit deadlines are easy to miss — until they cost you triple.
Vantric tracks your leases, deposits, and move-out dates in one place, built for landlords with 1–10 units.
Start Free TrialThis page is general information, not legal advice. Statutes change — verify against the official text linked above or consult a local attorney before acting.