Here is how the clock works, and why a landlord who misses it has usually lost more than the argument about carpet.

The usual window: fourteen to forty-five days

Most states require the deposit back — or an itemised statement of what was kept and why, with the balance — within a set number of days after you move out. The common range runs from about fourteen to forty-five days, with some states shortening it where there are no deductions and lengthening it where there are.

Your exact number is set by statute where you rent, so treat any figure you read online, including that range, as typical rather than as your law. A wrong number here is worse than no number.

What starts the clock

Usually the latest of three things: you have moved out, you have returned the keys, and — in many states — you have given a written forwarding address.

That last one carries more weight than it looks. If no address is ever provided, some landlords will argue the clock never began. Send one in writing so that the deadline is both running and provable.

What must actually be sent

Returning most of it is not enough. In most states, if a landlord keeps any part of the deposit, they must send an itemised statement — each deduction described, often with receipts — inside the deadline.

A lump-sum deduction with no itemisation frequently fails on its own, before anyone reaches the question of whether the charges were fair.

The penalty is the leverage

This is the part a landlord is counting on you not knowing. In many states, one who misses the deadline or fails to itemise forfeits the right to withhold anything at all — the full deposit can be owed back even where there was real damage.

Where the withholding was in bad faith, statutes commonly add a penalty of two or three times the amount, plus costs. A blown deadline can turn a partial deduction into a full refund.

If the deadline passes

If your window closes with no deposit and no itemised statement, send a written demand that names the statute and the missed date and asks for the full amount by a firm deadline of your own. If it is ignored, small-claims court is designed for this, and a missed statutory deadline is usually the cleanest case a tenant can bring — it turns on a date rather than on whose recollection of a carpet is better.

One caution

Informational, never legal advice. The exact deadline, the itemisation rule and the penalty are set by your state's statute; the ranges here are typical illustrations, not your law. For a dispute that matters, talk to a tenant lawyer or your local legal-aid office.