Oregon Security Deposit Law: 31 Days or Twice the Amount (ORS 90.300)

If your landlord is sitting on your deposit, Oregon law gives you a hard deadline and a real penalty — and a properly cited demand letter is how you invoke both. Here is exactly what ORS 90.300 requires.

Oregon's deposit rules at a glance

Return deadline	Within 31 days after the tenancy ends and possession is delivered (ORS 90.300(13))
The penalty	Twice the amount withheld without a written accounting, or withheld in bad faith (ORS 90.300(16))

The 31-day accounting requirement

Under ORS 90.300, once your tenancy ends and you've returned possession, your landlord has 31 days to refund your deposit or give you a written accounting stating specifically the basis of every claim against it. The accounting isn't a courtesy — it's the legal precondition for keeping anything at all.

Twice the amount, two ways to get there

ORS 90.300(16) provides double recovery on two independent paths: amounts withheld without the required written accounting, and amounts withheld in bad faith. Miss the 31-day accounting entirely and the doubling applies to everything kept; send an accounting padded with ordinary wear and tear or unsupported charges, and the bad-faith path opens on the padded amounts.

Wear and tear and the carpet trap

Oregon law expressly prohibits charging tenants for ordinary wear and tear, and long tenancies make many common deductions unlawful on their face — years-old carpet and paint have little to no remaining value to charge against. Oregon Law Help's own tenant materials walk through exactly this analysis; deduction lists that ignore it are bad-faith candidates.

Small claims and the demand letter

Oregon small claims courts hear deposit cases up to $10,000, and the doubled recovery makes even modest deposits worth pursuing. A demand letter citing ORS 90.300, identifying the missed accounting or the unlawful line items, and computing the doubled figure usually ends the conversation — Portland-area landlords in particular know how these cases run.

What a strong Oregon demand letter looks like

It states the deposit amount, the move-out date, the statutory deadline that passed, and the penalty exposure in dollars — citing ORS 90.300 by name. Here's how the opening of a strong one reads:

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Deposit amount

Move-out date

Landlord name (optional)

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Oregon Security Deposit Demand — Preview

[Your Name] [Your New Address] [City, OR ZIP] [Date] [Landlord Name] [Landlord Address] RE: Demand for Return of Security Deposit — ORS 90.300 — [Former Property Address] Dear [Landlord Name], I am writing to formally demand the return of my security deposit in the amount of $[AMOUNT] for the above property, which I vacated and surrendered on [MOVE-OUT DATE]. Under ORS 90.300, you were required to return my deposit or provide a written accounting stating the specific basis for any claim within thirty-one (31) days. As of today, [NUMBER] days have passed. Be advised that under ORS 90.300(16), amounts withheld without the required written accounting, or withheld in bad faith, entitle me to recover twice the amount withheld... Accordingly, demand is hereby made for payment of $[AMOUNT], together with all statutory penalties described above, within ten (10) days of the date of this letter — no later than [RESPONSE DEADLINE]. If payment is not received by that date, I will file suit in small claims court without further notice, where I will seek the full statutory penalty, court costs, and every other remedy available under law. I would prefer to resolve this without litigation — but I am fully prepared to proceed. Govern yourself accordingly, [Your Name]

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This guide is general information about Oregon law, not legal advice. Statutes are paraphrased; verify current law for your situation. For significant or contested claims, consult a licensed Oregon attorney.

Already hearing from a collection agency?

Landlords hand move-out balances to a small set of specialist collectors. If the letter is from National Credit Systems, Hunter Warfield, IQ Data International, or Source RM, we have a company-specific response guide for each — and the demand letter on this page still applies, because a landlord who missed the statutory deadline may owe you money regardless of who is calling. Any other collector: see the collection agency index and your state’s rules in the debt statute of limitations guide.