Security deposit interest in Delaware
No — Delaware does not require landlords to pay interest on security deposits.
There is no interest to calculate — here is what does apply
Delaware sets no interest requirement, so there is no figure to work out. The rules below are the ones that decide whether you get your deposit back in full, which is usually the larger sum anyway.
Deadline to return your deposit
20 days after the tenancy ends.
Miss it and the consequences below start to apply.
What to do next
- Give your landlord a written forwarding address. Several states make the return duty conditional on it, and Delaware's rules are summarised below.
- Photograph the unit at move-out, dated, before you hand back the keys. The dispute is almost always about condition.
- If the deadline passes, put the request in writing and cite Del. Code tit. 25 Sec. 5514. Keep a copy of what you sent and when.
Not legal advice. This is general information, not legal advice. Security deposit laws change and vary by jurisdiction. Verify with the cited statute or consult a licensed attorney in your state before taking action.
What does Delaware law actually say?
Delaware does not require landlords to pay interest on residential security deposits. The deposit must be held in a designated escrow account at a federally insured bank with an office accepting deposits in Delaware, and cannot be used in the landlord's business, but no statutory interest is owed to the tenant. Deposits are generally capped at one month's rent for leases of a year or more, with the cap not applying to furnished units.
The landlord must return the deposit, or the balance after an itemised list of damages, within 20 days of termination.
What if your landlord does not comply?
No interest obligation, so no interest penalty. Failure to remit the deposit or the balance within 20 days entitles the tenant to double the amount wrongfully withheld. Failure to disclose the escrow account location within 20 days of a written request, or failure to hold the deposit in a qualifying institution, forfeits the deposit to the tenant; failure to return it within 20 days of forfeiture entitles the tenant to double the deposit.