I'm at The Crown Inn on Franklin Ave, nursing a rye and amaro thing the bartender talked me into, which tastes like someone dissolved a cinnamon stick in a glass of autumn. I'm waiting for my friend Marcus, who is late, because Marcus is always late, when his roommate Alex walks in off Franklin Ave, spots me in the back, and drops into the chair across from me.
"Hey, you're the lawyer, right? Can I ask you something?"
This happens more than you'd think.
Alex has got a Gansett from the tap and a problem. His landlord is keeping $1,400 of his security deposit for "cleaning and repainting." He moved out six weeks ago. Nobody has sent him anything in writing. He wants to know if there's anything he can do.
I asked him one question. Did his landlord send him an itemized statement within 14 days of moving out?
"A what?"
I put down my drink. "Your landlord doesn't owe you some of that money. He owes you all of it."
Here's what I told him.
The Rules (Short Version)
New York's security deposit rules got a major overhaul in 2019 when the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act rewrote the playbook. I realize "major overhaul" makes it sound like they changed a few paragraphs. They burned the old rules down and built new ones. Here's what the law says now under General Obligations Law Section 7-108:
One important note: these rules under GOL 7-108 apply to non-regulated apartments. If your unit is rent stabilized, different rules under GOL 7-107 apply, and the protections are not as strong. If you're not sure whether your apartment is regulated, start there.
One month maximum. Your landlord cannot collect more than one month's rent as a security deposit. No exceptions. No "pet deposits." No first-and-last-month schemes. No "move-in fee" that is definitely a second deposit wearing a fake mustache. One month. That's it.
It's your money. The deposit is held in trust. Your landlord cannot dump it into their operating account and spend it. It must sit in a New York State bank account, separate from their funds. I know. I too am shocked that this needs to be a law.
Interest is owed (sometimes). If your building has six or more units, your landlord must place the deposit in an interest-bearing account and pay you the interest annually, minus a 1% administrative fee they keep. You know how you never got a check for $11.40 every January? A lot of landlords have been pocketing that for years. That's a violation.
You're entitled to a move-in inspection. Before you take occupancy, your landlord must offer you the chance to walk through the apartment together and document existing conditions in writing. This is the single most underused tenant protection I know of, and I say this as a person who has watched hundreds of tenants lose deposit arguments they should have won. If there's a crack in the bathroom tile on day one and you have that in writing, they can't charge you for it on day 365. Take timestamped photos. Do this even if your landlord acts annoyed about it. Especially if your landlord acts annoyed about it.
The 14-Day Rule (Long Version)
This is the part of the law that has actual teeth. I watched Alex's face when I explained this next part. It was the face of a man who just realized he's been walking around with a winning lottery ticket in his back pocket for six weeks.
Under GOL 7-108(1-a)(e), within 14 days after you vacate the premises, your landlord must do two things. First, provide you with an itemized statement listing any amount they're retaining from your deposit and the specific basis for each deduction. Second, return whatever balance remains.
Both. Within 14 days. Not one or the other. Not "my accountant is on vacation." Fourteen days.
Here's the thing. If your landlord blows that deadline, they don't just get a slap on the wrist. They forfeit the right to retain any portion of the deposit. All of it comes back. The entire deposit. Even if your apartment looked like a crime scene when you left. (Don't leave your apartment looking like a crime scene. But even if you did.)
This isn't theoretical. In Cohen v. Abruzzo, a 2024 Second Department case, the landlord sent their itemized statement six days late. Six days. The court reversed summary judgment for the landlord and sent the case back. Six days late on a piece of paper and the whole thing unravels. I love this statute.
In Swenson v. Westminster Management LLC, the landlord deducted a $250 "move out fee" and $125 for furniture removal when they returned the deposit. The charges might have been reasonable. Didn't matter. They weren't itemized in a written statement at the time of return. Full refund ordered. The landlord's lawyer probably had a long drive home after that one.
And here's the part that really makes landlords uncomfortable: in any dispute over the amount retained, the burden of proof sits with them, not you. That's GOL 7-108(1-a)(f). They have to prove they deserve your money. You don't have to prove they don't. The legislature flipped that on purpose.
This is the single most powerful tool tenants have in deposit disputes. If your landlord missed the window, the conversation about whether your deductions were fair is over before it starts.
What They Can (and Can't) Keep
Even when a landlord hits the 14-day deadline, they can only deduct for specific things under GOL 7-108(1-a)(b): unpaid rent, damage you caused beyond normal wear and tear, unpaid utility charges that your lease says you owe directly to the landlord, and costs of moving and storing your belongings if you left stuff behind.
That's the list. There is no "and whatever else we feel like charging you." I know it reads like a short list. That's because it is a short list. The legislature made it short on purpose.
Normal wear and tear is not deductible. Scuffed hardwood floors from furniture? Wear and tear. Faded paint after a three-year tenancy? Wear and tear. Nail holes from hanging pictures? Wear and tear. You lived in an apartment. The apartment looks lived in. That's not damage. That's physics. A fist-sized hole in the drywall? Okay, that's damage, and they can deduct for it. (Don't punch the drywall. I feel like I'm giving a TED Talk about things that should be obvious but here we are.)
Your landlord cannot charge you for damage caused by a prior tenant. Cannot tack on late fees. Cannot bill you for their legal costs. Cannot invent a "move-out fee" that doesn't correspond to actual documented expenses. And they absolutely cannot charge you for "deep cleaning" that's just normal apartment turnover between tenants. Every landlord cleans between tenants. That's called being a landlord. It's not a billable event.
This is where the move-in inspection saves you. If you documented a stained carpet when you moved in and your landlord tries to deduct $800 for carpet replacement when you move out, you pull out that inspection agreement and the photos you took. Conversation over. I've seen this exact scenario in court twice. Both times, the tenant with photos won. Both times, the tenant without photos lost. Get the photos.
Back at The Crown Inn
Marcus finally showed up. Alex had been turning this over in his head for a few minutes.
"So wait," Alex said. "He never sent me anything. No list, no letter, nothing. It's been six weeks. That means he can't keep any of it?"
That's exactly what it means.
"Even the repainting?"
Even the repainting. Even if the apartment genuinely needed repainting. He missed his 14 days. It's like getting pulled over doing 90 and telling the cop you were on your way to donate a kidney. Might be true. Doesn't matter. You were still doing 90.
Alex wanted to know what to do next. I told him there's a whole playbook for that, starting with a demand letter and going all the way up to punitive damages. If your landlord missed the 14-day deadline, here's what to do next.
Marcus, who had been listening to exactly none of this, looked up from his bourbon. "Wait, are you giving my roommate free legal advice? I've known you for six years and you still charge me." I reminded him that I've never once charged him for anything and also that he owes me dinner from 2024. He did not dispute this.
If you're a New York City tenant and you want to know whether your landlord followed the rules with your deposit, contact my office and let's figure out where you stand. If you're not sure whether your apartment is rent stabilized, that's worth knowing too. And if your building has habitability problems, the city is currently holding Rental Ripoff Hearings where you can put your experience on the record.
This is general legal information, not legal advice for your specific situation. Every apartment is different. If you have questions about your security deposit or any landlord-tenant issue, consult with an attorney who can review your actual circumstances.
