Sample letter · North Carolina

A North Carolina security deposit demand letter, when the landlord’s list came late

This is the full letter the Demand Letter Companion wrote for a fictional Raleigh tenant. The landlord kept $1,050 of a $1,400 deposit for carpet replacement and cleaning, sent no interim accounting, and mailed its itemized statement 18 days after North Carolina’s 30-day deadline. Names and addresses are blurred, as they would be on a real letter.

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North Carolina's deposit rules at a glance

The rules this letter is built on, checked against the statute on October 30, 2026. General information, not legal advice.

Deadline: 30 days after the tenancy ends and the landlord gets the home back, to return the deposit with an itemized statement of any damage.N.C. Gen. Stat. § 42-52
Interim accounting: If the landlord can’t finish its claim in 30 days, it must send an interim accounting within 30 days and a final one within 60.N.C. Gen. Stat. § 42-52
What can be deducted: Unpaid rent, damage to the home, and the other uses the statute lists, and never more than the landlord’s actual damages.N.C. Gen. Stat. §§ 42-51, 42-52
Normal wear and tear: No deduction for normal wear and tear.N.C. Gen. Stat. § 42-52
Willful violation: If a judge finds the landlord’s failure to follow the deposit rules was willful, the landlord loses the right to keep any part of the deposit, and the court may award the tenant attorney’s fees. Not automatic.N.C. Gen. Stat. § 42-55
Penalty: No double or triple damages. The tenant can recover the balance owed and damages from the violation.N.C. Gen. Stat. § 42-55
Deposit limit: Two weeks’ rent for a week-to-week tenancy, one and a half months’ rent for month-to-month, and two months’ rent for longer terms.N.C. Gen. Stat. § 42-51
Small claims: Magistrates hear claims up to $10,000.N.C. Gen. Stat. § 7A-210

Sample Fictional case · names and addresses blurred

November 1, 2026

Owen [redacted]
[redacted]
Brunswick, ME 04011

Lydia [redacted]
[redacted]
Cary, NC 27519

Re: Demand for return of security deposit — [redacted], Raleigh, North Carolina 27606

Dear Ms. [redacted]:

I demand return of the remaining $1,050.00 of my security deposit.

I rented [redacted], Raleigh, North Carolina 27606, under a lease from August 1, 2025, through July 31, 2026. I moved out and returned possession on July 31, 2026. I paid a $1,400.00 security deposit and received a $350.00 refund and an itemized statement on September 17, 2026.

Under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 42-52, you were required to return my security deposit or send an itemized list of deductions by August 30, 2026¹. You did neither by that deadline. The partial refund and itemized statement were provided on September 17, 2026, 18 days late. This deadline violation is independent of my objections to the deductions.

Under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 42-55, if a judge finds that your failure to follow the deposit rules was willful², you lose the right to keep any part of the deposit, and the court may award me reasonable attorney’s fees. These consequences are not automatic; only a judge can find willfulness.³

I dispute the entire $750.00 carpet-replacement charge. The carpet was already worn when I moved in, and I have move-in photos showing that wear.⁴ Under N.C. Gen. Stat. §§ 42-51(a), 42-52, deductions must be for permitted purposes, cannot include normal wear and tear⁵, and cannot exceed actual loss. I dispute charging me to replace carpet because of wear that existed before my tenancy.

I also dispute the entire $300.00 cleaning charge. I thoroughly cleaned the home before leaving and have photos showing its cleaned condition. Under N.C. Gen. Stat. §§ 42-51(a), 42-52, a cleaning charge must qualify as a permitted use of the deposit and cannot exceed actual loss. Listing the charge on an itemized statement does not establish that it was justified.

The disputed charges total $1,050.00: $750.00 for carpet replacement plus $300.00 for cleaning. That also equals my $1,400.00 deposit less the $350.00 returned. Under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 42-55, I can recover the unpaid balance attributable to improper deductions. If both disputed deductions are found improper, that balance is $1,050.00.

To resolve this matter now, I request payment of $1,050.00 by November 15, 2026⁶. Please mail a check or money order to my address above.

I would prefer to resolve this matter without litigation.

If I do not receive payment by November 15, 2026, I will file a complaint in small claims court without further notice.

Sincerely,

____________________________
Owen [redacted]

What to notice

1
The deadline math, done for youMove-out July 31, plus 30 days, is August 30. No interim accounting came, so there was no extension. The statement arrived September 17.
2
What a judge could doNorth Carolina has no double or triple damages. Its real consequence is that a willful violation costs the landlord the right to keep any of the deposit, plus possible attorney’s fees.
3
Honest about itThe letter says plainly that only a judge can find willfulness. It doesn’t claim the landlord has already lost the deposit.
4
The carpet’s historyThe tenant’s move-in photos show the carpet was already worn, so the charge is for wear that came before him.
5
The rule, citedNorth Carolina bars deductions for normal wear and tear and for more than the landlord’s actual loss.
6
A clear amount and a dateThe $1,050 actually disputed and a two-week deadline. With no multiplier in North Carolina, there’s no bigger court number to show.

Your letter will be different

The Companion builds each letter from your lease, your answers, and your state’s rules. So yours won’t look exactly like this one:

Not every landlord misses a deadline. If yours didn’t, the letter won’t claim it.
Penalties vary a lot by state. Some states have none, some double or triple the deposit, and some require bad faith. Your letter uses your state’s rule.
Your disputes come from your facts — what was there at move-in, what you did at move-out, and what you can show.

You read and approve every word before you print, sign, and mail it.

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More sample letters

CaliforniaStatement sent nine days late; $1,400 kept for carpet and painting.Read the letter →FloridaClaim sent by email, not certified mail; the whole $900 is owed.Read the letter →GeorgiaCountertop charge, though the scratch was on the signed move-in list; $1,200 disputed.Read the letter →IllinoisEstimates sent, receipts never followed; the whole $1,100 is owed.Read the letter →MichiganNo list of damages within 30 days and no lawsuit; the whole $1,400 is owed.Read the letter →New YorkNo refund and no statement within 14 days; the whole $2,400 is owed.Read the letter →OhioRepaint and carpet cleaning after three years; $975 disputed as normal wear.Read the letter →PennsylvaniaList eight days late, after a written forwarding address; the whole $1,250 is owed.Read the letter →TexasDeduction list three weeks late; bad faith presumed; $1,350 kept.Read the letter →

All sample letters · Deposit laws by state

This sample shows what the Demand Letter Companion produces for one fictional situation. It is not legal advice, and it is not a template to copy for your own case. Laws and outcomes vary by state and by facts.