2026 renter’s guide
Landlord Kept Your Security Deposit? The FTC Just Sent Renters $47.2 Million Back
In March 2026 the FTC mailed 444,131 refund checks to renters of one corporate landlord that, regulators alleged, kept deposits for normal wear and tear, pre-existing damage, and even renovations. If that pattern sounds familiar, your state’s law probably has more to say about your deposit than your landlord told you.
Last fact-checked: October 7, 2026
What the FTC crackdown actually was
In September 2024, the FTC sued Invitation Homes, one of the largest landlords of single-family homes in the country. Among the allegations: the company unfairly withheld tenants’ security deposits when they moved out, charging renters for normal wear-and-tear, damage that existed before they moved in, and even renovations. The company settled, agreeing to turn over $48 million and to set up policies for handling deposit refunds fairly. Source: FTC, Sept. 2024
The money landed in March 2026. On March 11, the FTC announced it was mailing 444,131 checks totaling more than $47.2 million to affected renters. That is not a class-action rounding error. That is nearly half a million households whose deposits and fees a federal regulator decided were taken wrongly. Source: FTC, Mar. 11, 2026
And it wasn’t a one-off. In December 2025, Greystar, the nation’s largest multi-family property manager, agreed to pay $24 million to settle an FTC and Colorado lawsuit. That case was about a different practice: advertising deceptively low rents while hiding mandatory monthly fees. Different conduct, same theme. Federal and state regulators are now looking hard at how big landlords handle renters’ money. Source: FTC, Dec. 2, 2025
Why this matters for your deposit
The FTC checks only went to eligible Invitation Homes renters. But the conduct the FTC called out (wear-and-tear charges, pre-existing damage, renovation costs pushed onto the outgoing tenant) is the same playbook renters describe at small landlords everywhere. The difference is that for your own deposit, the enforcement mechanism isn’t the FTC. It’s your state’s security-deposit statute, and you can use it yourself.
Rented from Invitation Homes? Check for your refund
If you paid Invitation Homes $45 or more in covered fees or charges between January 2021 and September 2024, you may be among the 444,131 people the FTC is paying. Checks should be cashed within 90 days of the date printed on them. Renters who already received a credit or refund from Invitation Homes directly are not eligible. Source: FTC, Mar. 11, 2026
Questions go to the refund administrator, Rust Consulting, at 800-804-6915. One thing worth repeating in bold, because scammers love enforcement news: the FTC never asks you to pay money or hand over account details to receive a refund. Anyone who does is not the FTC.
Normal wear and tear vs. damage: the line landlords blur
This is where most wrongly kept deposits hide. Colorado’s statute says it flat out: since January 1, 2026, a deposit cannot be kept “to cover normal wear and tear or for any damage or defective condition that preexisted the tenancy.” California’s statute allows deductions for repairing damage “exclusive of ordinary wear and tear.” Most states draw the same line, in similar words. Sources: Colo. Rev. Stat. § 38-12-103(1)(a), as amended by HB 25-1249; Cal. Civ. Code § 1950.5(b)
What does the line mean in practice? Wear and tear is what happens to a home when someone lives in it normally. Damage is what happens when someone breaks it.
| Typically normal wear and tear (not deductible in most states) |
Typically damage (may be deductible) |
|---|---|
| Faded or scuffed paint after years of tenancy | Large holes in walls, unapproved paint colors |
| Carpet worn along walking paths | Burns, pet stains, or tears in carpet |
| Small nail holes from hanging pictures | Broken doors, windows, or fixtures |
| Loose grout, worn finishes, aging appliances | Appliances broken through misuse |
| General cleaning to the same standard as move-in | Excessive filth requiring professional remediation |
These are the classic examples courts and tenant handbooks use; your state’s exact standard controls. But notice what never belongs on the deductible side: renovations and upgrades. New carpet because the old one aged out, a repaint on a normal cycle, replacing a 15-year-old appliance. That’s the cost of owning a rental. Charging the outgoing tenant for it was one of the specific practices the FTC called out at Invitation Homes.
Deadlines and itemized statements: the rules landlords skip
Nearly every state gives landlords a hard deadline to return your deposit or explain, in writing and item by item, why they’re keeping part of it. Skipping the itemized statement isn’t a paperwork foot-fault. In some states it costs the landlord the entire right to withhold anything.
| State | Deadline | What the statute requires |
|---|---|---|
| California | 21 calendar days after you vacate | Itemized statement of the basis and amount of each deduction. A landlord who fails to comply with the itemization rules in bad faith loses the right to claim any of the deposit. § 1950.5(h) |
| Colorado | 30 days after the lease ends or you surrender the premises, whichever is later (up to 60 days if the lease says so) | Written statement listing the exact reasons for any retention, with the balance. If you ask in writing, the landlord must also provide the relevant documentation it holds (photos, inspection reports, receipts, invoices, estimates). Missing the deadline, leaving out the reasons or the documentation, or otherwise withholding wrongfully forfeits the landlord’s right to withhold any portion. § 38-12-103(1), (2), (2.5), (8) |
| Massachusetts | 30 days after the tenancy ends | Return the deposit (or the balance after lawful deductions) with interest. A deduction for damage needs an itemized list sworn under the pains and penalties of perjury, with written evidence of the cost (estimates, bills, invoices or receipts); without it the landlord forfeits the right to keep any of the deposit. Failure to return what’s owed triggers the state’s treble-damages provision. c. 186 § 15B(4)(iii), (6)–(7) |
Your state will have its own numbers. The pattern to check is always the same: was there a deadline, did the landlord meet it, and did you get a real itemized statement rather than a round number and a shrug?
The 2x–3x penalties: why wrongful withholding is expensive
Here’s the part most renters never hear. Many states don’t just make the landlord give the money back. They make wrongful withholding cost a multiple of what was taken.
- Massachusetts: a landlord who fails to return the deposit owed within 30 days is liable for three times the deposit (or the wrongly kept balance), plus 5% interest, court costs, and reasonable attorney’s fees. Mass. G.L. c. 186 § 15B(7)
- Colorado (for move-outs on or after January 1, 2026): wrongful retention makes the landlord liable for treble the portion of the deposit wrongfully withheld, plus reasonable attorney fees and court costs. First you must send a written demand for the deposit, with notice that you intend to sue, at least seven days before filing; the treble-damages claim is available only if the landlord doesn’t return the money within those seven days. Keeping 125% or more of the landlord’s actual damages is presumed to be bad faith. And in court, the landlord carries the burden of proving the withholding was not wrongful and of proving its actual damages, not you. Colo. Rev. Stat. § 38-12-103(3), (3.5), as amended by HB 25-1249
- California: bad-faith retention can subject the landlord to statutory damages of up to twice the deposit, on top of actual damages. The landlord also bears the burden of proving the deductions were reasonable. Cal. Civ. Code § 1950.5(m)
Many other states have their own multiplier or forfeiture provisions; the three above are simply ones we verified against the statute text for this guide. The practical effect is the same everywhere it applies: a landlord holding $1,800 of yours in bad faith may be risking several times that by refusing to give it back. Most of them are betting you don’t know that. A demand letter that cites the exact statute tells them the bet is off.
Was your deposit wrongly kept? A checklist
Run your move-out through this list. Each item is a sign your landlord’s withholding may not hold up:
- You never received an itemized, written statement of deductions, just a smaller check (or nothing).
- The statement arrived after your state’s deadline.
- You were charged for painting, carpet, or cleaning with no evidence you caused damage beyond normal use.
- Deductions cover conditions that existed before you moved in.
- You were billed for upgrades or renovations (new flooring, remodeled fixtures) rather than repairs of damage you caused.
- Charges are round numbers with no receipts or invoices behind them.
- The “cleaning fee” would restore the unit to a standard better than when you moved in.
Ticking even one box doesn’t guarantee you’ll recover anything. It means the deduction deserves a challenge instead of a sigh.
How to get it back, step by step
Every step of this process is free to use. Nobody needs to pay anyone to demand their own deposit back.
- Gather your evidence. Lease, move-in and move-out photos or video, the deduction statement (if any), and every email or text about the move-out. Dates matter: pin down exactly when you handed back the keys.
- Look up your state’s deadline and penalty. Search your state’s statutes for “security deposit” (they’re free to read online), or start from the verified examples above if you’re in California, Colorado, or Massachusetts.
- Send a written demand letter, by certified mail, stating what was withheld, why the deductions are improper, the statute that applies, and a deadline to pay (14 days is common). Certified mail matters: it proves the landlord received it, and some states (Colorado, for one) require a written demand and notice before you can sue.
- If they don’t pay, file in small claims court. Filing fees vary by state and court, lawyers generally aren’t required, and deposit cases are the bread and butter of small claims dockets. In several states, the burden in court sits on the landlord to justify the deductions.
- Report the conduct. A complaint to your state attorney general’s consumer-protection office, or to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov, won’t recover your individual deposit, but it’s exactly how patterns like Invitation Homes’ ended up costing $47.2 million.
Watch the clock
Deposit claims are subject to statutes of limitations like any other claim, and some steps (like Colorado’s seven-day pre-suit notice) have their own timing rules. If your move-out was recent, the strongest moment to act is now, while the evidence is fresh and the deadlines are provable.
Frequently asked questions
Can my landlord keep my security deposit for normal wear and tear?
In most states, no. Colorado’s statute bars keeping a deposit for normal wear and tear or for damage that existed before the tenancy, and California limits repair deductions to damage beyond ordinary wear and tear. Check your own state’s statute for its exact wording.
What counts as normal wear and tear?
The gradual decline that comes from ordinary living: worn carpet paths, faded paint, small nail holes, aging fixtures. Damage, by contrast, comes from misuse or neglect: burns, large holes, broken fixtures, serious stains. States phrase the line differently, but that’s the shape of it everywhere.
What if my landlord never sent an itemized list of deductions?
That’s often the strongest fact in your favor. In Colorado, a missing or late written statement (or missing documentation you asked for in writing) counts as wrongful withholding and forfeits the landlord’s right to withhold anything. In California, bad-faith failure to follow the itemization rules means the landlord may not claim any of the deposit. Other states have their own versions; check yours.
How long does a landlord have to return a security deposit?
It varies by state. Verified examples: California, 21 calendar days after you vacate; Colorado, 30 days (up to 60 if the lease says so); Massachusetts, 30 days after the tenancy ends. Your state’s number will be in its security-deposit statute.
Can I really get two or three times my deposit back?
In states with multiplier provisions, and when the statute’s conditions are met, yes, that’s what the law provides. Massachusetts: 3x the deposit or balance owed for failures such as not returning it within 30 days (no bad-faith requirement). Colorado: 3x the portion wrongfully withheld, after a written demand the landlord ignores for seven days. California: up to 2x plus actual damages for bad-faith retention. No outcome is guaranteed in any individual case; a court decides whether the standard is met.
Do I need a lawyer to get my deposit back?
Usually not. The normal path is a demand letter followed, if needed, by small claims court, which is designed for people without lawyers. Some statutes, like Massachusetts’s and Colorado’s, let you recover attorney’s fees if you do hire one and win. For complex situations, a local tenant-rights organization or attorney is worth a consultation.
I rented from Invitation Homes. Do I need to apply for the FTC refund?
The FTC mailed checks directly to eligible consumers in March 2026. If you think you qualify and haven’t received one, contact the refund administrator, Rust Consulting, at 800-804-6915. The FTC never asks for payment or account details to issue a refund.
Is the FTC action the same as my own deposit claim?
No. The FTC settlement compensates eligible Invitation Homes renters for that company’s conduct. Your own claim against your own landlord runs through your state’s security-deposit statute: demand letter first, small claims court if needed. The FTC case is useful context, not a substitute.
Sources
- FTC press release, March 11, 2026: FTC Sends Checks Totaling More Than $47.2 Million to Consumers Deceived by Invitation Homes’ Undisclosed Fees and Other Unlawful Charges (444,131 checks; eligibility window January 2021–September 2024; refund administrator details).
- FTC press release, September 2024: FTC Takes Action Against Invitation Homes ($48 million settlement; allegations of withholding deposits for normal wear-and-tear, pre-existing damage, and renovations).
- FTC press release, December 2, 2025: Greystar Agrees to Pay $24 Million (FTC and Colorado action over deceptive rent advertising and hidden mandatory fees).
- California Civil Code § 1950.5 (21-day itemization deadline; ordinary wear and tear; bad-faith statutory damages up to twice the security).
- Massachusetts General Laws c. 186 § 15B (30-day return requirement; treble damages, interest, costs, and attorney’s fees).
- Colorado Revised Statutes § 38-12-103, as amended by House Bill 25-1249 (signed June 3, 2025; applies to conduct on or after January 1, 2026): 30-day return deadline, up to 60 days by lease; no deductions for normal wear and tear or pre-existing damage; forfeiture; documentation on written request; treble the portion wrongfully withheld plus fees and costs after a written demand and seven days’ notice; 125% bad-faith presumption; landlord’s burden of proof. Checked against the signed act on October 7, 2026.