Landlord & tenant · New Mexico
the short answer
Your landlord has 30 days to send you an itemized written list of anything kept out of the deposit, and the balance of it, counted from the day the lease ended or the day you moved out, whichever is later. Miss that and the landlord loses the right to keep any of it, loses the right to counterclaim if you sue, loses any separate case against you for damage to the property, and owes your court costs and attorney's fees. Nothing may be kept for normal wear and tear.
source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.
governing statute
NMSA 1978, § 47-8-18
source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.
deadline
30 days
source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.
Across the country. 23 of the 47 states written up answer this the same way as New Mexico. The shortest is 14 days, as in Alaska; the longest is 60 days, as in Alabama. Compare every state →
penalty
Missing the 30 days forfeits the right to withhold any part of the deposit, forfeits any counterclaim in an action brought to recover it, makes the owner liable for court costs and reasonable attorney's fees, and forfeits any independent action against the resident for damage to the rental property — in that order in § 47-8-18(D). Retaining a deposit in bad faith adds a civil penalty of $250 payable to the resident (§ 47-8-18(E)).
source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.
which court
Magistrate court
source ↗Checked against the statute on 2026-08-25
small claims limit
$10,000
source ↗Checked against the statute on 2026-08-25
exceptions: Libel, slander and malicious prosecution cannot be heard here at any amount, and neither can a case that puts the title or the boundaries of land in question.
source ↗Checked against the statute on 2026-08-25
also
Every deposit has to be a reasonable one, and on a lease shorter than a year it may not exceed one month's rent. On a yearly lease it may go above a month, but then the owner owes you interest on it every year, at the passbook rate allowed to savings and loan associations in this state. The $250 bad-faith penalty is a flat sum, not a multiple of the deposit, so on a large deposit the real remedy is the forfeiture rule above it.
source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.
your situation
Everything above is the law as it reaches everyone in New Mexico. What it means for you turns on facts only you have. Tell us what happened and we'll ask the same questions a lawyer would — about 90 seconds, free, and anonymous.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Written by an AI model, which can be wrong. Not a lawyer, and not a prediction about your case. Terms · Privacy
a landlord keeping my deposit — state by state →other claims in this state →
sponsors