A security deposit is not a fund the landlord spends and explains later. Section 1950.5 defines what it may be applied to — four categories, no fifth — and then draws a boundary around them twice: once by saying what qualifies, and once by saying what never does. Deposit disputes come down to which side of that boundary a deduction sits on.
The four lawful uses
Under section 1950.5(b), a deposit may cover unpaid rent; the repair of damage caused by the tenant, exclusive of ordinary wear and tear; cleaning needed to return the property to the level of cleanliness it had at the start of the tenancy; and, where the rental agreement says so, the cost of restoring or replacing the landlord's personal property — furniture in a furnished rental. A deduction that doesn't fit one of those four isn't a weak deduction. It isn't a deduction.
The boundary, in the statute's words
The other side of the line is just as explicit:
The landlord shall not assert a claim against the tenant or the security for damages to the premises or any defective conditions that preexisted the tenancy, for ordinary wear and tear or the effects thereof, whether the wear and tear preexisted the tenancy or occurred during the tenancy, or for the cumulative effects of ordinary wear and tear occurring during any one or more tenancies.
Two things live inside that sentence. Conditions that predate the tenancy — the scratched counter that was scratched at move-in — are not the tenant's to pay for, which is why move-in photographs matter years before anyone is angry. And ordinary wear and tear — the slow aging any property does while someone lives an ordinary life in it — is the landlord's cost of being a landlord. Where the line between damage and aging sits has its own guide: Ordinary wear and tear, explained.
Cleaning means 'as clean as when you moved in'
The cleaning standard is not 'professionally cleaned,' 'move-in ready,' or whatever the listing photos looked like. It is the level of cleanliness at the inception of your tenancy — the condition you received, not an ideal. And one cleaning charge gets a rule of its own:
The landlord shall not require a tenant to pay for, or assert a claim against the tenant or the security for, professional carpet cleaning or other professional cleaning services, unless reasonably necessary to return the premises to the condition it was in at the inception of tenancy, exclusive of ordinary wear and tear.
Routine carpet cleaning imposed as a standing requirement is exactly the kind of charge the statute took the trouble to name.
'Nonrefundable' isn't a thing
Some leases label part of the deposit — a 'cleaning fee,' a 'pet deposit' — as nonrefundable. Section 1950.5(n) says a lease cannot do that: whatever the label, money held as security is refundable, subject only to the four lawful uses above. A lease clause saying otherwise doesn't change the law; the law changes the clause.
Every deduction carries paperwork
A lawful category alone isn't enough — the deduction has to arrive documented: the itemized statement within 21 days, receipts where repair and cleaning deductions together exceed $125, and photographs of the conditions behind repair and cleaning charges since April 2025. A deduction that fits the statute but arrived without its paperwork is missing statutory parts. What the paperwork must contain: Your landlord won't return your deposit — what happens next; the photograph rules and exemptions: California's deposit-photo law explained.
Whether a specific deduction was lawful, and whether it arrived the way the law requires, both start from your dates and your statement. The free check sorts your situation in about two minutes.
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Day Twenty Two provides self-help legal information for California renters, not legal advice. Statutory citations are to California Civil Code section 1950.5 as currently amended. For advice about your specific situation, consult a licensed California attorney.