Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Massachusetts

Re: Tenant cannot be located to return security deposit

First you can call his employer and verify if he is still employed there and if not if they have an address where you can reach him.

Second, you can check with the Post office on how to send a letter to the Tenant so you can get a forwarding address for him/her.

Lastly, you can send a certified letter with the check to the Tenant and when it gets returned keep it unopened.

Finally, after a year you need to escheat the funds with interest to the Commonwealth as unclaimed money from the tenant. If you contact the Commonwealth's department on escheated funds they can tell you the process for doing so.

Re: Tenant cannot be located to return security deposit

Another method you might use is to send a letter to the tenant, priority mail with delivery confirmation to his last known address (your unit). It should be forwarded, if your tenant has arranged mail forwarding.

Once forwarded, it will get to your tenant, and you will at least get confirmation. The message inside is, simply, "You have not responded to my e-mail. Thus, I am advising you that you need to cash the enclosed check, which is for your security deposit." If received, great. If not, it will be returned to you.

If in any event the check is not cashed within thirty days, stop payment.

After that, you have acted in good faith. You have a good defense to a claim that you have violated the security deposit statute.

Keep a record of all of this, of course.