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Minnesota Security Deposit Law, in Plain English

Minnesota's deposit law has no cap and a modest 1% interest rule — its weight is in the penalties. Wrongful withholding is doubled, bad faith adds $500, and a 2024 law gives tenants the right to request inspections at both ends of the tenancy, with photos and video explicitly allowed as the record. Here's how Minn. Stat. § 504B.178 and § 504B.182 actually work, for both sides of the lease.

3 weeksDeadline after termination and receipt of the tenant's address to return the deposit with interest or send a written statement of reasons
No capMinnesota sets no limit on deposit size
1%Simple annual interest on the deposit, paid with it
14 days / 5 daysNotice of the initial-inspection option within 14 days of move-in; move-out inspection no earlier than 5 days before leaving
2x + $500Wrongful withholding doubled as a penalty; bad-faith retention adds up to $500 per deposit

No cap — but 1% simple interest, always

Minnesota sets no statutory limit on deposit size. Whatever the landlord collects earns **simple, noncompounded interest at 1% per year**, computed from the first day of the month after the deposit is paid in full through the last day of the month in which the landlord returns it. It's small money (interest under $1 needn't be paid), but it's owed on every deposit, and forgetting it is a violation with the same consequences as any other.

Since 2024: inspections on request at move-in and move-out — photos allowed

§ 504B.182, effective January 1, 2024, added two rights most tenants still don't know they have. **Initial inspection.** At the start of the tenancy or within **14 days** of the tenant moving in, the landlord must notify the tenant of the option to request an initial inspection to identify existing deficiencies — so the tenant isn't charged for them later. The parties schedule it at a mutually acceptable time. **Move-out inspection.** The landlord must notify the tenant **in writing** of the option to request a move-out inspection, held **no earlier than 5 days before** the end of the lease or the planned move-out, so the tenant can fix identified problems before they become deductions. For both, the statute says the parties may use **photos or videos of the unit with written acknowledgment** instead of an in-person walkthrough — one of the few deposit laws in the country that names the camera as the method. A landlord who skips the required notices, or refuses a requested inspection, owes a penalty equal to the withheld portion plus interest, on top of whatever was wrongfully withheld.

Minnesota's inspection law names photos and video as the record. Make yours room by room.

PropInspect walks you room by room — photos, 60-second video clips, and tagged notes attached to each room. Share the finished report as a link the other party can view without an account, or download it as a PDF to serve as the initial or move-out inspection record with written acknowledgment. Works in the browser, works offline, no app to install. First inspections free, then $0.99 each. No subscription.

Minnesota law lets landlords and tenants use photos or videos with written acknowledgment in place of an in-person inspection. PropInspect helps you capture a dated, room-by-room record. PropInspect is a documentation tool, not a compliance service or legal-advice product. Using PropInspect does not guarantee compliance with Minnesota law or a particular result in a deposit dispute.

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After move-out: three weeks from the day the landlord has your address

Within **three weeks** after the tenancy ends **and** the landlord receives the tenant's mailing address or delivery instructions, the landlord must return the deposit plus interest — or give a **written statement of the specific reason** for withholding any part of it. Mailing it first-class within the window satisfies the deadline. A tenant who leaves because the building was legally condemned gets it within **five days**. The clock doesn't start without an address. Hand over a forwarding address in writing on move-out day, and keep a copy. What may be withheld: only amounts **reasonably necessary** to remedy defaults in rent or other money owed under the agreement, or to **restore the premises to their condition at the start of the tenancy, ordinary wear and tear excepted**. That phrase — condition at the start — is exactly what the initial inspection exists to establish. One tenant-side rule: a tenant may **not** skip the last month's rent on the theory that the deposit covers it. Doing so creates a rebuttable presumption of improper withholding and exposes the tenant to a penalty.

When it goes wrong: doubled, plus $500 for bad faith

The statute stacks three penalties. For any wrongful withholding, the landlord owes the withheld amount plus interest, **and an equal amount plus interest as a penalty** — effectively double. If the landlord never gave the written statement, the **burden shifts** to the landlord to prove the reason for withholding. And **bad-faith** retention adds **punitive damages up to $500 per deposit** — with bad faith presumed unless the landlord returns the deposit within two weeks after a lawsuit is filed. Many Minnesota deposit disputes resolve the week the court papers arrive. Disputes go to **Conciliation Court** — Minnesota's small claims court — which hears claims up to **$20,000**, informal and inexpensive. The winning file: the lease, the forwarding-address notice, the written statement or proof none arrived, the inspection requests and any photo/video record with acknowledgment, and dated room-by-room documentation from both ends of the tenancy.

Fuentes y textos oficiales

The official sources for this guide are **Minn. Stat. § 504B.178** — interest, withholding, and damages (Office of the Revisor of Statutes); **Minn. Stat. § 504B.182** — initial and move-out inspections; the **Minnesota Attorney General's Landlords and Tenants: Rights and Responsibilities** handbook; and the **Minnesota Judicial Branch Conciliation Court** page ($20,000 limit).

Preguntas frecuentes

How long does a landlord have to return a security deposit in Minnesota?

Three weeks after the tenancy ends and the landlord has your mailing address or delivery instructions — so give your forwarding address in writing the day you leave. Within that window the landlord must return the deposit plus 1% interest, or give you a written statement of the specific reason for any withholding. If you left because the building was condemned, the deadline is five days.

How much can a landlord charge for a security deposit in Minnesota?

There's no statutory cap. Whatever the amount, it earns simple interest at 1% per year from the first day of the month after you pay it in full, and that interest comes back with the deposit.

What are Minnesota's move-in and move-out inspection rights?

Since January 1, 2024, the landlord must tell you — within 14 days of move-in — that you can request an initial inspection to document existing deficiencies, and must notify you in writing that you can request a move-out inspection, held no earlier than 5 days before you leave, so you can fix problems before they become deductions. Both can be done with photos or videos plus written acknowledgment instead of in person. Request both, in writing.

What can a landlord deduct from a deposit in Minnesota?

Only amounts reasonably necessary to cover unpaid rent or other money you owe under the lease, and to restore the unit to its condition at the start of the tenancy — ordinary wear and tear excepted. Faded paint and normally worn carpet are not deductible.

What happens if the landlord wrongfully keeps money or skips the written statement?

The tenant recovers the wrongfully withheld amount plus interest, and an equal amount plus interest as a penalty — effectively double. If the landlord never gave a written statement, the landlord carries the burden of proving the reason for withholding. And if the landlord skipped the required inspection notices or a requested inspection, there's an additional penalty equal to the withheld portion plus interest.

What is Minnesota's bad-faith penalty?

Up to $500 in punitive damages per deposit, on top of the doubling. Retention is presumed to be in bad faith unless the landlord returns the deposit within two weeks after you file suit — which is why many Minnesota deposit cases settle the week the conciliation court claim is served.

Can I use my deposit as last month's rent in Minnesota?

No. § 504B.178 subd. 8 forbids withholding last month's rent on the theory that the deposit covers it (with narrow exceptions), and doing so creates a rebuttable presumption that you withheld improperly, exposing you to a penalty. Pay the last month, then collect the deposit.

Where do deposit disputes go in Minnesota?

Conciliation Court — Minnesota's small claims court — handles claims up to $20,000 (raised from $15,000 in August 2024), which comfortably covers a doubled deposit plus the $500 penalty. Bring the lease, your forwarding-address notice, the written statement or proof none arrived, your inspection requests, and dated move-in and move-out photos or videos.

Landlord or tenant, the rule is the same: the record wins arguments you'd rather not have.

Document the move-in today so the move-out is boring. Photos, video, and notes for every room, offline-capable, shareable as a link or PDF. Free to start — no account, no app, no credit card.

PropInspect is a documentation tool, not a compliance service or legal-advice product. Using PropInspect does not guarantee compliance with Minnesota law or a particular result in a deposit dispute.

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