Wherewithal

New Jersey security deposit return obligations for landlords

What the statute requires of you in New Jersey: return deadlines, clock triggers, itemization / notice duties, deposit caps, and penalties for non-compliance — drawn from Wherewithal’s statute research corpus. A landlord who complies correctly does not create a statutory penalty claim.

Confidence: PRIMARY

PRIMARY — main elements read against statute text

Deadline to return / account30 days (5 business if displaced)
When the clock startstermination of lease/license
Penalty for non-compliancedouble the moneys due + costs + discretionary fees (mandatory double)
Deposit cap (maximum you may collect)1.5 mo
Escrow / interest requirementsyes
CitationN.J.S.A. §§ 46:8-19 to 26

Source: N.J.S.A. §§ 46:8-19 to 26

Compliance flags / traps

⚠ no judicial discretion on double

Corpus version: a61f5f5af9a30d6c (hash of human fields; use as last-updated fingerprint)

Deadline calculator

Compliance tool only — estimates the statutory return / accounting window from Wherewithal’s corpus fields. Not legal advice. No case is created.

This state’s corpus encodes a primary numeric window of 30 days (alternate track: 5 days). Enter the move-out / possession-delivery date the statute keys on.

Tenant side: New Jersey security deposit return rules

Same statute corpus, framed for tenants organizing a deposit-return claim.

Nearby states (landlord side)

Wherewithal is an organizational tool only. Not legal advice. Consider consulting a licensed attorney. This page is compliance information for landlords summarizing statutory duties — not legal advice.

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