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See the whole letter free — your deadline, the days late, and the statutory exposure as possible — before you pay anything.
The letter cites Cal. Civ. Code § 1950.5 and states the date your landlord’s deadline passed — 21 calendar days after the date you moved out.
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The full letter with your facts, the California deadline, the deposit table and the statute quoted — watermarked. You only pay to remove the watermark and get the PDF.
Rule applied: 21 calendar days after the date you moved out, per Cal. Civ. Code § 1950.5.
Before you pay: the full letter is shown free in the preview, watermarked. You only pay to remove the watermark and get the PDF.
This tool produces a self-help document. It is not legal advice, no attorney-client relationship is created, and no outcome is guaranteed. If your claim is large or disputed, speak to a landlord-tenant lawyer or legal aid.
This is a real letter, produced by the same engine that makes the PDF, with a fictional tenant and landlord and California’s actual rule. Read it before you pay for anything — it is exactly what you would receive.
November 4, 2026
VIA CERTIFIED MAIL — RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED
Dear Property Manager:
I rented the premises at 77 Rented Avenue, Springfield from you. My tenancy ended and I moved out on August 26, 2026. I paid a security deposit of $2,400.00.
You have returned $700.00 of that deposit. $1,700.00 remains unreturned.
Under Cal. Civ. Code § 1950.5, you were required to return the deposit and an itemized statement of any deductions no later than September 16, 2026 — 21 calendar days after the date you moved out. That date passed 49 days ago, and I have received no payment of the balance.
You did not give me a written, itemized statement of the deductions you are keeping, although Cal. Civ. Code § 1950.5 requires one.
The deposit I paid was $2,400.00. You returned $700.00. The balance I am asking you to return is $1,700.00.
The rule that applies is Cal. Civ. Code § 1950.5. The state's official source for it is listed for this state on locafact.com, and the fragments below are quoted from the statute text captured for this letter.
The statute describes the deductions a landlord may make as follows: Only amounts reasonably necessary to repair or clean the premises or remedy a default; itemized statement plus receipts/invoices; bad-faith failure means the landlord cannot claim any part of the deposit.
The deadline is measured in calendar days: 21 calendar days after the date you moved out, which for the dates above is September 16, 2026.
“No later than 21 calendar days after the tenant has vacated the premises”
“statutory damages of up to twice the amount of the security, in addition to actual damages”
Because if a court finds the landlord acted in bad faith, Cal. Civ. Code § 1950.5 may also allow amounts above the unreturned balance:
• statutory damages of up to 2× the security deposit: $4,800.00
• in addition to the unreturned deposit (actual damages)
On the figures above, that is up to $4,800.00 in addition to the $1,700.00 unreturned balance — a possible total of up to $6,500.00. These amounts are not owed unless the condition the statute sets out is established; they are stated as the possible exposure, not as a demand.
Please pay me $1,700.00 within ten (10) days of the date of this letter.
A check payable to me can be sent to the address at the top of this letter. If you believe some part of the deposit was properly kept, send me an itemized statement with the receipts or invoices for each amount.
If I do not receive payment or a written response within that time, I will consider filing a claim in small claims court for the unreturned deposit and any amount the statute allows, and I will keep this letter and the certified-mail record as evidence.
This is a self-help document, not legal advice, and no outcome is guaranteed.
The deadline from your dates and the state rule (21 calendar days after the date you moved out), the days late, the unreturned balance, and — where the statute has a verified penalty — the possible exposure above that balance.
Yes. The whole letter is shown watermarked, free. You pay only to download the clean PDF.
No. It is a self-help document tool, not a law firm. No outcome is guaranteed.