New Hampshire security deposit law

A security deposit may not be more than one month's rent or $100, whichever is greater. Any money the tenant pays you beyond the monthly rent counts as a security deposit, whatever it is called and whatever it is for.

RSA 540-A:6, I(a) RSA 540-A:5, II

• If the lease calls for rent to be paid quarterly or less often, the deposit taken on top of the first rent payment still may not exceed one month's rent. RSA 540-A:6, I(a)
• The deposit rules do not apply to a person who rents out a single-family home and owns no other rental property, or who rents units in an owner-occupied building of five units or fewer. The exception does not reach a unit in that building occupied by someone 60 or older. RSA 540-A:5, I
• The deposit rules also do not cover vacation or recreational rentals. RSA 540-A:5, I RSA 540-A:5, III
• A landlord may not raise a customary security deposit for a tenant with a disability. RSA 354-A:11, III(a)
• A landlord who takes a deposit above the limit is treated as violating the state Consumer Protection Act. RSA 540-A:8, I(a)

Return the deposit, with any interest due, within 30 days after the tenancy ends. You may deduct the cost of repairing damage beyond reasonable wear and tear, unpaid rent, and other lawful charges the lease calls for. Give the tenant a written itemized list of every deduction.

RSA 540-A:7, I RSA 540-A:7, II

• For damage, the list must describe with particularity the repair needed and include satisfactory evidence that it has been or will be done, such as receipts for materials, labor estimates, bills or invoices. RSA 540-A:7, I
• For unpaid rent, charges or a lease share of increased real estate taxes, the list must state the period each claim covers. RSA 540-A:7, II
• A landlord who does not follow the return or interest rules owes the tenant twice the deposit plus interest due, less payments made and charges the tenant owes. RSA 540-A:8, I(b)
• You are not liable for missing these rules if the tenant did not give you a new address when the tenancy ended. A deposit and interest left unclaimed for six months after the tenancy ends become yours, absent fraud. RSA 540-A:8, II
• A lease clause waiving the tenant's deposit rights is void. RSA 540-A:8, III
• When a tenant ends the lease as a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking, the deposit stays applied to the rental until all tenants have left, then is returned under the normal rule. RSA 540:11-b, IV

The deposit stays the tenant's money. Hold it in trust and do not mix it with your own funds. You may keep all your tenants' deposits together in one trust account at a bank, savings and loan association or credit union organized under New Hampshire law, or instead post a bond with the town or city clerk. If you hold a deposit for a year or longer, you owe the tenant interest on it.

RSA 540-A:6, II RSA 540-A:6, IV

• Interest runs at the rate the New Hampshire institution holding the deposit pays on regular savings accounts, from the day you receive the deposit. If deposits are pooled in one account, pay each tenant a proportional share of the interest actually earned. RSA 540-A:6, IV(a)
• On request, tell the tenant the institution, account number, amount on deposit and interest rate, and let the tenant examine the deposit records. RSA 540-A:6, IV(b)
• A tenant may ask for the interest accrued every three years, by asking 30 days before that year's tenancy expires; pay it within 15 days after that year's tenancy expires. RSA 540-A:6, IV(c)
• The bond must be written by a company located in New Hampshire, cover the total deposits you hold on property in that city or town, and be posted with its clerk. RSA 540-A:6, II(c)
• If you sell the property or assign the lease, turn the deposit over to the new owner or assignee at delivery of the deed or assignment or within five days after, and notify the tenant by registered or certified mail of the name and address of the new holder. Doing so, with interest due, ends your liability for it. RSA 540-A:6, III

When you receive a deposit, tell the tenant in writing that any conditions in the unit needing repair or correction should be noted on the receipt or given to you in writing within five days of moving in.

RSA 540-A:6, I(b) RSA 540-A:6, I(c)

• Give the tenant a signed receipt at once stating the amount and where the deposit, or the bond for it, is held. No receipt is needed when the deposit is paid by personal check, bank check, or a government or nonprofit agency check, but the five-day conditions notice is still required. RSA 540-A:6, I(b) RSA 540-A:6, I(c)
• The deposit rules, including this notice, do not apply to the small landlords the definition leaves out. RSA 540-A:5, I See Security deposit limit on the New Hampshire page