Quick Reference: Mississippi Security Deposit Rules

A Mississippi tenant moves out on 1 March, hands back the keys, and disappears. No forwarding address, no phone call, no letter. The manager holds the deposit, does the sums, and waits.

Day 46 arrives. Has the landlord breached Section 89-8-21?

The statute does not simply say "45 days after move-out." It identifies three events: the termination of his tenancy, the delivery of possession and demand by the tenant.

Published summaries of Mississippi's deposit rule commonly state the deadline as forty-five days after the tenant vacates. That drops the word "demand," and the statute expressly includes demand by the tenant among the events preceding the forty-five day deadline.

This guide covers what the section actually requires, the two categories of money it does not reach, the conditional wording that ties deductions to the deposit's stated purpose, and why the penalty for getting it wrong is smaller than most managers expect.

What Counts as a Security Deposit

Section 89-8-21(1) defines the section's reach by function rather than by label, and then carves out a category.

The section governs any payment or deposit of money, the primary function of which is to secure the performance of a rental agreement or any part of such an agreement.

But it expressly excludes a payment or deposit, including an advance payment of rent, made to secure the execution of a rental agreement.

One important operational point : those are two different jobs. A payment whose primary function is to secure performance of the tenancy is inside the section. A payment whose primary function is to secure the execution of a rental agreement falls outside it, and the forty-five day rule and itemization requirement do not attach.

Whether a particular holding deposit or pre-tenancy payment falls within that exclusion depends on the purpose and terms of the payment. The stated purpose is important, but the actual function and terms of the payment determine whether Section 89-8-21 applies, so a label alone will not move money from one side of the line to the other.

And the tenant's money outranks your creditors. Under subsection (2), the deposit is held by the landlord for the tenant, and the claim of a tenant to such payment or deposit shall be prior to the claim of any creditor of the landlord.

That is a genuine protection for the tenant in an insolvency, and it sits in a statute that otherwise imposes no escrow or separate-account duty at all. Mississippi protects the tenant's priority without telling the landlord where to keep the money.

Step 1 : Know What You May Deduct, and On What Condition

Subsection (3) lists four categories, and then attaches a condition that managers routinely miss.

The landlord may claim only such amounts as are reasonably necessary:

• to remedy the tenant's defaults in the payment of rent;

• to repair damages to the premises caused by the tenant, exclusive of ordinary wear and tear;

• to clean such premises upon termination of the tenancy; or

• for other reasonable and necessary expenses incurred as the result of the tenant's default.

Then the condition. Those deductions are available "if the payment or deposit is made for any or all of those specific purposes."

Read that as a drafting instruction. The right to deduct is tied to what the deposit was taken for. A deposit arrangement that says nothing about cleaning, or nothing about expenses arising from default, invites an argument that the money was not made for that purpose.

A neighbouring section worth knowing. Section 89-8-19 sets the notice periods for terminating a periodic tenancy, and Section 89-8-23 follows immediately after the deposit provision. Because the 45 days runs from termination of the tenancy, the notice rules that fix the termination date feed directly into the deposit clock.

Note also what is not on the list. There is no general "breach of lease" category. The fourth limb reaches expenses incurred as the result of the tenant's default, which is narrower than any cost the landlord would like to recover.

Step 2 : Claim in Writing, and Itemize

The mechanism in subsection (3) has two components and both are mandatory.

The claim must be by written notice delivered to the tenant. The statute says the landlord "by written notice delivered to the tenant, may claim". There is no route to a valid deduction that does not pass through a delivered written notice.

And that notice shall itemize. The written notice by which the landlord claims all or any portion of the deposit shall itemize the amounts claimed by such landlord.

Two practical consequences follow.

• A single figure is not an itemization. The statute requires the amounts claimed to be itemized, which means a line per claimed amount rather than a total.

• Delivery is part of the requirement. "Delivered to the tenant" is doing work in that sentence, and where a tenant has left no address the practical difficulty is the landlord's to solve.

Maintaining a documented condition record and repair trail is what makes each itemized line defensible. The guide on how to manage maintenance requests covers building that record during the tenancy rather than assembling it at move-out.

Step 3 : The 45 Days and What Starts Them

This is the provision this article is named for, and the wording repays close reading.

Any remaining portion of such payment or deposit shall be returned to the tenant no later than forty-five (45) days after the termination of his tenancy, the delivery of possession and demand by the tenant.

Three events are named:

• the termination of his tenancy - the legal end of the tenancy;

• the delivery of possession - the tenant giving the premises back; and

• demand by the tenant - the tenant asking for the deposit.

Applicability note : the statute does not expressly explain how these three events interact when they occur on different dates, and Mississippi does not define "demand" in this context. For operational purposes, managers should track all three dates and avoid treating the demand requirement as permission to delay returning a deposit indefinitely.

What a manager should actually do. Because the statute does not expressly explain how the three events interact when they occur on different dates, managers should track all three and avoid relying on the demand element as a reason to delay a return. The conservative practice is to prepare the itemization and the balance promptly, diary forty-five days from any written demand received, and take Mississippi advice where the dates do not align.

And note what the statute does not say. There is no deadline in Section 89-8-21 for the written itemized notice separate from the forty-five day return of the remaining portion. The safe practice is to send the itemization and the balance together, within the same forty-five days.

Step 4 : Understand How Small the Penalty Is

Mississippi's consequence for getting this wrong is modest, and it is worth knowing precisely because managers arriving from other states will over- or under-estimate it.

Under subsection (4), the retention by a landlord or transferee of a deposit or any portion of it, in violation of this section and with absence of good faith, may subject the landlord or transferee to damages not to exceed Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00) in addition to any actual damages.

Four features matter.

• There must be an absence of good faith. A late or defective return made in good faith does not trigger the subsection, though the deposit itself remains owing.

• The extra damages are capped at $200. This is not a double or treble damages state. Compared with the forfeiture and multiplier provisions in Delaware, Maine or Montana, Mississippi's statutory penalty is small.

• Actual damages sit on top. The $200 is "in addition to any actual damages," and the deposit wrongly retained is itself recoverable.

• A transferee is liable too. The subsection names the landlord or his transferee, which matters on a sale of the property.

A caution on published figures. At least one 2026 guide describes the Mississippi remedy as the amount wrongfully withheld plus court costs and reasonable attorney's fees. Section 89-8-21(4) does not say that. It caps the additional damages at $200 over actual damages. Any fee or cost entitlement would have to come from elsewhere.

What Mississippi Does Not Require

Four absences define Mississippi deposit practice, and together they put unusual weight on the lease.

• No cap. The section sets no maximum on the amount collected.

• No interest. There is no interest requirement for any holding period.

• No separate account, escrow or non-commingling rule. Subsection (2) creates a priority for the tenant over the landlord's creditors, but it does not tell the landlord where to hold the money.

• No statutory move-in condition report. Nothing in the section requires one, even though subsection (3) turns on damage "exclusive of ordinary wear and tear," which is a comparison against the unit's condition at the start.

The result is a relatively permissive statutory framework, but the deposit agreement still matters because Section 89-8-21 ties permitted deductions to the purposes for which the payment or deposit was made. Where the arrangement is silent about what the money secures, the statute does not fill the gap for the landlord.

One Thing That Has Not Changed

Mississippi rewrote its residential eviction procedure in 2022. Senate Bill 2461, Laws 2022 chapter 501, substantially revised the state's residential landlord-tenant and eviction provisions, including the addition of the current Sections 89-8-31 through 89-8-45, and further amendments followed in 2025.

Section 89-8-21 was not part of that. It retains its 1991 history line, reading Laws 1991, chapter 478, section 11, effective from and after 1 July 1991. The deposit rule a Mississippi manager operates under today is the rule enacted in 1991.

That is worth knowing for two reasons. Guidance written before 2022 remains reliable on deposits even where it is now wrong on evictions. And a manager who updated their eviction workflow after the overhaul should not assume the deposit provisions moved with it - the two sets of provisions now sit at different points in the chapter and carry different amendment histories.

Common Mississippi Deposit Mistakes

1. Diarizing 45 days from move-out alone
The statute names termination of the tenancy, delivery of possession and demand by the tenant.

2. Treating a holding deposit as a security deposit, or the reverse
Section 89-8-21(1) excludes payments made to secure the execution of a rental agreement, including advance rent.

3. Deducting for a purpose the deposit was never taken for
The deduction categories apply if the deposit is made for those specific purposes.

4. Sending a total rather than an itemization
Subsection (3) requires the written notice to itemize the amounts claimed.

5. Making the claim without delivering written notice
The section conditions the claim on written notice delivered to the tenant.

6. Charging for ordinary wear and tear
The damage limb is expressly exclusive of ordinary wear and tear.

7. Assuming a large statutory penalty
Subsection (4) caps the additional damages at $200 above actual damages, and requires an absence of good faith.

8. Buying a property and ignoring the deposits
Subsection (4) makes a transferee liable alongside the landlord.

Where Mississippi Deposit Cases Are Decided

Because Mississippi's statute is short and permissive, the documents a manager creates carry more of the load than the statute does.

Three records do the work.

• The deposit arrangement itself. Subsection (3) makes the deduction categories conditional on the deposit having been made for those purposes, and subsection (1) draws the line between securing performance and securing execution. Both questions should be addressed clearly in the lease and payment records, while the actual purpose and terms of the payment remain important, which makes disciplined lease management a substantive matter rather than an administrative one.

• The move-in and move-out condition record. No statute requires one, but a condition record can be important when establishing whether claimed damage exceeds ordinary wear and tear. A documented tenant and property record is what turns that question into a comparison rather than an assertion.

• The dates. Termination, delivery of possession, any demand received, the date the itemized notice was delivered and the date the balance was sent. Because the trigger has three components, the file needs all of them.

Keeping those reconcilable to each other is the whole of Mississippi deposit compliance. Platforms like RIOO exist to hold that record in one place. 

Conclusion

Mississippi's deposit statute is comparatively concise. No cap, no interest, no escrow, no prescribed account, no move-in report, and a bad faith penalty capped at $200.

The challenge is not the burden - it is the precision.

Because the four things that decide a Mississippi deposit case are all in a single subsection. Whether the money was taken to secure performance or execution, which determines whether the section applies at all. Whether the deposit was made for the purposes you are now deducting against, which determines whether the deduction is available. Whether a written notice was delivered and whether it itemized. And when the forty-five days began, which the statute ties to termination, delivery of possession and demand by the tenant rather than to move-out alone.

For teams managing Mississippi portfolios in Jackson, Gulfport, Southaven, Hattiesburg or anywhere in the state, the operating discipline is short. Say in the lease and on the receipt exactly what the deposit secures, and keep holding deposits clearly separate. Record termination, delivery of possession and any tenant demand as three distinct dates. Send the itemized written notice and the balance together, and deliver them. And do not read the modest $200 penalty as permission to be slow, because the deposit itself, plus actual damages, remains recoverable regardless.

This blog is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Section 89-8-21 has not been amended since 1991, but other provisions of the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act were substantially revised in 2022 and again in 2025, and individual circumstances differ. Confirm the current text with the Mississippi Code and consult a licensed Mississippi attorney on a specific deposit dispute.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. How much can a Mississippi landlord charge as a security deposit?
Section 89-8-21 sets no cap. The amount is a matter for the rental agreement.

Q2. How long does a Mississippi landlord have to return a security deposit?
Under Section 89-8-21(3), any remaining portion must be returned no later than 45 days after the termination of the tenancy, the delivery of possession and demand by the tenant.

Q3. Does the 45 days start when the tenant moves out?
The statute names three events, including demand by the tenant, and does not expressly explain how they interact when they fall on different dates. As a prudent operational approach rather than a settled rule, track all three dates, work from the later of termination and delivery of possession, and diary 45 days from any written demand received.

Q4. What can a Mississippi landlord deduct from a deposit?
Under Section 89-8-21(3), amounts reasonably necessary to remedy defaults in the payment of rent, to repair damage caused by the tenant exclusive of ordinary wear and tear, to clean the premises on termination, and for other reasonable and necessary expenses incurred as a result of the tenant's default, if the deposit was made for those specific purposes.

Q5. Does the landlord have to itemize?
Yes. The written notice by which the landlord claims all or any portion of the deposit shall itemize the amounts claimed, and the notice must be delivered to the tenant.

Q6. Is a holding deposit a security deposit in Mississippi?
It depends on what the payment secures. Section 89-8-21(1) excludes a payment or deposit, including an advance payment of rent, made to secure the execution of a rental agreement, and reaches payments whose primary function is to secure performance.

Q7. What is the penalty for wrongly withholding a deposit in Mississippi?
Under Section 89-8-21(4), retention in violation of the section and with absence of good faith may subject the landlord or transferee to damages not to exceed $200 in addition to any actual damages.

Q8. Does Mississippi require deposits to be held in a separate account?
No. Section 89-8-21 imposes no escrow, separate account or non-commingling requirement, though subsection (2) makes the tenant's claim prior to that of any creditor of the landlord.

Q9. Does Mississippi require interest on security deposits?
No. The section contains no interest requirement.

Q10. Did the 2022 eviction overhaul change the deposit rules?
No. Section 89-8-21 retains its 1991 history line, reading Laws 1991, chapter 478, section 11, effective 1 July 1991. Senate Bill 2461 in 2022 substantially revised the eviction provisions without amending the deposit section.

Q11. Is a buyer of the property liable for the deposits?
Section 89-8-21(4) names the landlord or his transferee as potentially liable for retention in violation of the section with absence of good faith.