Tools · Security Deposit
South Carolina Security Deposit Demand Letter
A written request for the return of your deposit, with the South Carolina statute (S.C. Code Ann. §27-40-410 (Residential Landlord and Tenant Act)), the 30 days deadline, and the penalty the law provides already filled in. Add your dates and amount, then copy or print it.
South Carolina deposit demand letter generator
This is a general template for a common situation, not legal advice and not a substitute for a lawyer's review of your case. Blanks you leave empty print as lines you can fill in by hand.
Re: Return of the security deposit for ________________
Dear ________________,
I was a tenant at ________________ and moved out on ________________. My security deposit of $________________ has not been returned.
Under S.C. Code Ann. §27-40-410 (Residential Landlord and Tenant Act), a landlord must return the deposit, or provide an itemized statement of any deductions, within 30 days after the tenancy ends and you hand back the unit, whichever is later, once you have given the landlord a forwarding address.
Where a deposit is wrongfully withheld, the statute provides: If the landlord fails to return the deposit or send the required written itemization, you may recover three times the amount wrongfully withheld plus reasonable attorney fees. There is also a distinctive disclosure rule: a landlord who rents more than four adjoining units on the premises and uses different deposit standards for different tenants must, before the lease is signed, either post those standards conspicuously or give each prospective tenant a written statement of them. A landlord who does not comply cannot take damage deductions from the amount by which your deposit exceeds the lowest deposit charged a comparable unit.
I request the return of my deposit of $________________, or the itemized statement the statute requires, as provided by S.C. Code Ann. §27-40-410 (Residential Landlord and Tenant Act). Please send it to me at the mailing address below.
Sincerely,
________________
________________
The citation, deadline, and penalty above come from S.C. Code Ann. §27-40-410 (Residential Landlord and Tenant Act). Full rule and exceptions: South Carolina security deposit reference. If the deposit is not returned, money disputes this size are what small claims court handles: see the South Carolina limit.
Why a written demand, and what this letter does
A dated, written request is usually the first step a court or a legal-aid office will ask about, and in some states it is what starts or preserves the penalty. This letter states the facts: your tenancy, your move-out date, the deadline South Carolina law sets, and what the statute provides when a deposit is wrongfully withheld. It asks for what the law already requires, and it leaves any decision about going further entirely to you.
The template is informational only and not legal advice. If your situation has wrinkles (deductions you dispute, a lease that shifted the deadline, a local ordinance), check the South Carolina security deposit reference or talk to a lawyer or local legal aid before sending.
Deposit demand letters for other states
Same template, each with its own citation, deadline, and penalty.