Lease

Once you've found your cozy off-campus nook, the question remains of how much money your landlord can demand as a security deposit. According to The Tenant Survival Book, a publication distributed by the Tenant's Action Group of Philadelphia, "the landlord can make the tenant pay a security deposit equal to two months' rent, but no more," in addition to the first month's rent. The purpose of the security deposit is "to protect the landlord if the tenant damages the property," the book states. Often a landlord will ask for "first and last month's rent, plus a security deposit," a spokesperson from the Office of Off Campus Living said. "But the last month's rent is really part of the two month's rent deposit," she explained. "It's just another way of saying it." If the tenants fail to pay rent, the landlord may withdraw money from their security deposits. When a tenant's lease has expired, he or she may ask the landlord to return the security deposit, if the security deposit has not been used to pay the last month's rent, the book continues. It cautions that the tenant should request that the security deposit be returned in writing. "Keep a copy and send your letter certified mail, return receipt requested, so that you can prove your landlord received it." After living in an apartment or house for more than a year, though, "your landlord can hold a sum of money equal to only one month's rent for a security deposit," the book states. Tenants are able to collect interest on their security deposits after residing in the leased property for more than two years, it states. "The interest must be paid to you on the anniversary of the date you moved in," The Tenant Survival Book states.