Maximum Security Deposit in Arizona: 1.5 Months of Rent

The most an Arizona landlord may demand or receive as security, prepaid rent included, is "one and one-half month's rent", under A.R.S. 33-1321(A). A tenant may voluntarily pay more rent in advance, but the landlord may not demand it. Nonrefundable fees need a stated purpose in writing, and anything not designated nonrefundable is refundable.

What the statute says

A landlord shall not demand or receive security, however denominated, including prepaid rent in an amount or value of more than one and one-half month's rent.

• (A) The cap, plus the sentence that it "does not prohibit a tenant from voluntarily paying more than one and one-half month's rent in advance".
• (B) "The purpose of all nonrefundable fees or deposits shall be stated in writing by the landlord. Any fee or deposit not designated as nonrefundable is refundable."
• (C) At move-in the landlord furnishes a signed copy of the lease, "a move-in form for specifying any existing damages to the dwelling unit" and written notice that the tenant may be present at the move-out inspection. On the tenant's request, the landlord must say when the inspection will occur. There is an exception from the joint inspection where a tenant is being evicted for a material and irreparable breach and the landlord has reasonable cause to fear violence or intimidation.

The definition in A.R.S. 33-1310(15) matters here: security is "money or property given to assure payment or performance under a rental agreement". The same item adds: "Security does not include a reasonable charge for redecorating or cleaning." The text does not define "reasonable", or say whether a nonrefundable cleaning fee is that kind of charge.

Worked examples

Scenarios at $1,600 rent (cap $2,400). The Act does not define "prepaid rent". Under A.R.S. 33-1314(C) periodic rent is, unless otherwise agreed, payable at the beginning of each month, so the first month paid when due is ordinary rent. We treat money paid at signing for later months as prepaid.

For scenario D, we suggest keeping the tenant's offer in writing, dated.

Nonrefundable fees: write the purpose down

Our template; the statute requires the purpose in writing, not this wording.

FEE AND DEPOSIT SCHEDULE
Monthly rent: $________   Cap (rent x 1.5): $________
Refundable security deposit: $________
Prepaid rent for months after the first: $________
Nonrefundable fee 1: $________  Purpose: ____________________
Nonrefundable fee 2: $________  Purpose: ____________________
Anything not listed as nonrefundable above is refundable.
Tenant initials: ______  Date: ________

Pet deposits: what the text does and does not say

No section of the Act as published uses the words pet deposit or pet fee. The word pets appears in the title of A.R.S. 33-1314, whose animal provisions concern retrieving a tenant's animal if the tenant dies or is incapacitated, and, as an application topic, in A.R.S. 33-1368. Neither sets or limits a deposit. What the text does give us:

• Section 33-1314(A) allows rental terms "not prohibited by this chapter or any other law", and the cap is part of this chapter.
• The cap reaches security "however denominated", which suggests a refundable pet deposit given to assure performance counts toward it. That is our reading, not a sentence about pets.
• Silent: whether a nonrefundable pet fee with a stated purpose is security, and whether other laws limit charges for animals. Ask an Arizona attorney before collecting one.

Common mistakes

• Calling a fee nonrefundable with no written purpose. Subsection (B) requires the purpose in writing. The text does not say what follows if it is missing; the safe course is to state it or treat the money as refundable.
• Renaming a deposit. Holding fee, key deposit or reservation deposit is a label; the cap says "however denominated". Whether a given label is security depends on what the money is for.
• Forgetting prepaid rent when adding up what the tenant paid at signing.
• Topping up after a rent increase. The text does not say whether the cap is measured at signing or follows later rent changes.
• Skipping the move-in package in (C). The text states no penalty, but the move-in form is what you compare against at move-out.
• Assuming a stated remedy for overcharging. Subsection (E)'s double damages attach to failing to comply with subsection (D), the return process. Subsection (F) preserves other damages under the Act. For an overcharge, ask an Arizona attorney.

Checked against the text published on azleg.gov on 5 October 2026.

Sources

• A.R.S. 33-1321 — Arizona Legislature, Arizona Revised Statutes
• A.R.S. 33-1310 — Arizona Legislature, Arizona Revised Statutes
• A.R.S. 33-1314 — Arizona Legislature, Arizona Revised Statutes
• A.R.S. 33-1368 — Arizona Legislature, Arizona Revised Statutes

Related guides

• Arizona Security Deposit Return: The 14-Day Clock Explained
• Arizona 5-Day Notice to Pay Rent or Quit (A.R.S. 33-1368(B))
• Arizona 10-Day Notice to Cure a Lease Violation (A.R.S. 33-1368(A))
• Arizona Eviction Process: Special Detainer Steps and Deadlines
• Can a Tenant Stop an Arizona Eviction by Paying Rent? (33-1368)
• Arizona Landlord Entry Notice Rules Under A.R.S. 33-1343
• Arizona Landlord Failed to Repair: Tenant Remedies and Deadlines
• Arizona Late Fee Law for Landlords: What the Statute Says
• Arizona Month-to-Month Notice and Rent Increase Rules
• Arizona Abandoned Tenant Property: Landlord Rules, A.R.S. 33-1370
• Arizona Landlord Retaliation Rules Under A.R.S. 33-1381

Informational only, not legal advice. Statute text checked against the Arizona Revised Statutes (Title 33, Chapter 10 and Title 12, Chapter 8, Article 4) as published at azleg.gov on October 5, 2026. Statutes change every legislative session and a court may read them differently than a summary does; for a dispute, an eviction or anything expensive to get wrong, talk to an Arizona landlord-tenant attorney.