Security Deposit Not Returned in South Dakota: What Can I Do?
This page covers getting your security deposit back in South Dakota. It covers the return deadline and the landlord's written reasons. It also covers what a landlord may take out and what you can do if the rules are not followed.
-
In South Dakota, money meant to secure a residential rental agreement, or any part of one, counts as a security deposit. The name your landlord gives the money does not matter.
✓ Sources checked October 3, 2026
-
Your landlord must return your deposit, or send you a written statement of the reason for keeping it, within 21 days. The 21 days start after your rental ends and your landlord has your mailing address or delivery instructions.
✓ Sources checked October 3, 2026
-
Give your landlord your mailing address or delivery instructions in writing when you move out. Keep a copy. In South Dakota, the landlord's 21 days to return your deposit start once the landlord has them.
✓ Sources checked October 3, 2026
-
If your South Dakota landlord keeps all or part of your deposit, the written statement must show the specific reason for keeping it.
✓ Sources checked October 3, 2026
-
A South Dakota landlord may take out of your deposit only the amounts reasonably necessary for three things. They are unpaid rent, other money you owe under an agreement, and putting the home back to its condition when your rental began. The landlord may not charge for ordinary wear and tear (the normal wearing down from everyday living).
✓ Sources checked October 3, 2026
-
If you ask, your South Dakota landlord must give you an itemized accounting (a list showing each amount kept and why) of any deposit kept. The landlord has 45 days after your rental ends to give it.
✓ Sources checked October 3, 2026
-
Ask your landlord for the itemized accounting (a list of each amount kept) in writing. Keep a copy of your request. Take dated photos of the home when you move out.
-
Your South Dakota landlord must act within 21 days. The clock runs from when the rental ends and the landlord has your mailing address or delivery instructions. The landlord must return your deposit by then. Or your landlord must give you a written statement of the specific reason for keeping any part. A landlord who does not follow these rules loses all rights to keep any part of your deposit.
✓ Sources checked October 3, 2026
-
A landlord who keeps a deposit, or part of it, in bad faith can be ordered to pay up to $200 as punishment. The $200 limit covers a bad faith failure to give the written statement or itemized accounting (a list of each amount kept). You get this money only if you win your case and your landlord pays.
✓ Sources checked October 3, 2026
Is something on this page wrong or out of date? Tell us.