Security deposit interest in Kansas
No — Kansas does not require landlords to pay interest on security deposits.
There is no interest to calculate — here is what does apply
Kansas 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
30 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 Kansas'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 Kan. Stat. Sec. 58-2550. 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 Kansas law actually say?
Kansas does not require landlords to pay interest on residential security deposits. The statute contains no interest provision and imposes no escrow or separate account requirement. Deposits are capped at one month's rent for unfurnished units and one and one-half months' rent for furnished units, with an additional half month's rent permitted where the tenant keeps pets.
The deposit may be applied only to accrued rent, damages caused by the tenant's noncompliance, and other lawful charges under the rental agreement. Within 30 days of termination and delivery of possession the landlord must return the deposit or give the tenant a written itemised statement of any deductions; where the amount of damages is not yet determinable, the landlord has 14 days from determining the amount but no more than 30 days after termination. Any remaining balance must be returned within 14 days after the itemisation is delivered.
If the tenant does not demand the deposit within 30 days of that notice, the landlord may remit it to the state treasurer as unclaimed property.
What if your landlord does not comply?
No interest obligation, so no interest penalty. A landlord who wilfully retains a deposit in violation of this section is liable for the amount wrongfully withheld plus damages of one and one-half times that amount. A tenant who does not comply with the required termination procedures forfeits the deposit.