Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in Missouri

Re: deposit

The law in Missouri is that if you are renting from month to month you are required to give thirty days notice. To be effective, the notice must be timed in accord with the duty to pay rent. So, for example, if your rent is due on 5/15, and you give notice on 5/15, you can move out on 6/15 without any problem. If you give notice on 5/16, the notice is not effective until 7/15.

With respect to deposit, however, the law is in your favor. See Section 535.300.

2. Within thirty days after the date of termination of the tenancy, the landlord shall:

(1) Return the full amount of the security deposit; or

(2) Furnish to the tenant a written itemized list of the damages for which the security deposit or any portion thereof is withheld, along with the balance of the security deposit. The landlord shall have complied with this subsection by mailing such statement and any payment to the last known address of the tenant.

3. The landlord may withhold from the security deposit only such amounts as are reasonably necessary for the following reasons:

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(2) To restore the dwelling unit to its condition at the commencement of the tenancy, ordinary wear and tear excepted; or

(3) To compensate the landlord for actual damages sustained as a result of the tenant's failure to give adequate notice to terminate the tenancy pursuant to law or the rental agreement; provided that the landlord makes reasonable efforts to mitigate damages.

4. The landlord shall give the tenant or his representative reasonable notice in writing at his last known address or in person of the date and time when the landlord will inspect the dwelling unit following the termination of the rental agreement to determine the amount of the security deposit to be withheld, and the inspection shall be held at a reasonable time. The tenant shall have the right to be present at the inspection of the dwelling unit at the time and date scheduled by the landlord.

5. If the landlord wrongfully withholds all or any portion of the security deposit in violation of this section, the tenant shall recover as damages not more than twice the amount wrongfully withheld.