The Maximum Legal Move-In Cost in Every State (2026)
Landlord Atlas analysis. Published: September 1, 2026. Deposit-cap law as verified through July 12, 2026; rent benchmark: HUD FY2027 Fair Market Rents, published September 1, 2026. Download the 50-state table as CSV; the records behind it are in the Landlord Atlas dataset.
Cite this page
Landlord Atlas, "The Maximum Legal Move-In Cost in Every State (2026)," published September 1, 2026; data as verified July 12, 2026. https://landlordatlas.com/research/maximum-legal-move-in-cost-2026/
One number from two datasets
How much can moving in legally cost? Two layers answer that together. State law decides the biggest security deposit a landlord may demand — usually expressed in months of rent. The federal government publishes what a modest rental actually costs in each market: HUD's Fair Market Rent, the 40th percentile of gross rents, refreshed every year. This analysis joins them: for every state with a deposit cap, the maximum legal move-in cost is one month's rent plus the largest deposit the statute allows, priced at the state's population-weighted FY2027 two-bedroom FMR. It is a ceiling, not a typical cost — and where the statute sets no ceiling, no figure is computed, because none exists.
- 29 states cap the deposit; 21 set no ceiling. Among the caps: one month's rent in 14 states, one and a half in 3, two months in 11, and three months in one (Nevada).
- The highest legal ceiling is Nevada's: $6,688 — a three-month aggregate cap on top of a $1,672 benchmark rent. Connecticut, Colorado, and New Jersey follow ($6,099, $5,748, $5,670).
- The highest-rent state is not the highest-ceiling state. California's benchmark rent ($2,632) is the nation's highest, but its one-month cap holds the legal maximum to $5,264 — below five states with cheaper rents and larger caps.
- The lowest computed ceiling is North Dakota's $2,204 — a one-month cap on a $1,102 benchmark.
- Several caps are recent: California, Georgia, and Maryland all tightened or newly created their ceilings in 2024, and Colorado capped deposits in 2023 — each state's page carries the statute, the effective date, and what counts toward the cap.
The map
Each tile links to the state's security-deposit page, where the cap is stated with its citation and conditions.
The 29 capped states, ranked by legal ceiling
Each row prices the state's statutory maximum deposit at its FY2027 population-weighted two-bedroom FMR. The note beside each cap is from the state's verified record; the linked page carries the full conditions and citations.
| State | Deposit cap | Avg 2BR rent (FY2027) | Max deposit | Max move-in | What the cap covers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nevada | 3 months' rent | $1,672 | $5,016 | $6,688 | The ceiling is an AGGREGATE one: the security deposit, any surety bond and prepaid last month's rent all count toward it (NRS 118A.242(1)). |
| Connecticut | 2 months' rent | $2,033 | $4,066 | $6,099 | That is the limit for tenants under 62; for tenants 62 or older the ceiling is one month's rent. |
| Colorado | 2 months' rent | $1,916 | $3,832 | $5,748 | A pet deposit is separately capped at $300, must be refundable, and pet rent is capped as well. |
| New Jersey | 1.5 months' rent | $2,268 | $3,402 | $5,670 | Every dollar of prepaid money held to secure the tenancy counts toward that ceiling, whatever it is labeled — 'last month's rent' included (N.J.S.A. |
| Virginia | 2 months' rent | $1,792 | $3,584 | $5,376 | The limit is effectively combined: the deposit plus any damage-insurance and renter's-insurance premiums demanded before the tenancy begins may not exceed it. |
| California | 1 month' rent | $2,632 | $2,632 | $5,264 | The limit is the same whether the unit is furnished or not, and it aggregates every security-functioning charge. |
| Maine | 2 months' rent | $1,714 | $3,428 | $5,142 | Pet deposits and similar charges count toward the same ceiling, because a security deposit is defined by its function (14 M.R.S. |
| Massachusetts | 1 month' rent | $2,566 | $2,566 | $5,132 | The deposit sits inside a four-item limit on move-in charges: first month's rent, last month's rent, a deposit equal to first month's rent, and the cost of a key and lock. |
| Hawaii | 1 month' rent | $2,467 | $2,467 | $4,934 | A separately agreed pet deposit of up to one additional month's rent may also be charged where the rental agreement allows a pet, so two months total is possible. |
| New York | 1 month' rent | $2,402 | $2,402 | $4,804 | The cap covers non-rent-stabilized dwelling units under GOL 7-108(1-a). |
| Georgia | 2 months' rent | $1,528 | $3,056 | $4,584 | The cap applies to residential leases entered into or renewed on or after July 1, 2024; older leases stay uncapped until renewal. |
| Pennsylvania | 2 months' rent | $1,528 | $3,056 | $4,584 | That ceiling applies only in the first year of a lease. |
| Alaska | 2 months' rent | $1,519 | $3,038 | $4,557 | The ceiling covers prepaid rent and the security deposit combined, however denominated (AS 34.03.070(a)). |
| North Carolina | 2 months' rent | $1,441 | $2,882 | $4,323 | The cap scales by tenancy type: two weeks' rent for a week-to-week tenancy, one and one-half months' rent month to month, and two months' rent for any term longer than month to month (G.S. |
| Maryland | 1 month' rent | $2,103 | $2,103 | $4,206 | The limit runs per dwelling unit regardless of the number of tenants (RP § 8-203(b)(1)). |
| Arizona | 1.5 months' rent | $1,616 | $2,424 | $4,040 | This is an aggregate ceiling covering the security deposit, prepaid rent, and any refundable fees regardless of label (ARS 33-1321(A)). |
| New Hampshire | 1 month' rent | $2,010 | $2,010 | $4,020 | The cap is that amount or $100, whichever is greater (RSA 540-A:6, I(a)). |
| Rhode Island | 1 month' rent | $1,911 | $1,911 | $3,822 | The ceiling covers any security deposit 'however denominated,' so pet deposits and other security-type charges count against the same one-month limit (R.I. |
| Missouri | 2 months' rent | $1,250 | $2,500 | $3,750 | Relabeling does not escape the limit: any money or property a tenant furnishes to secure performance counts, however denominated (RSMo 535.300.8). |
| Delaware | 1 month' rent | $1,727 | $1,727 | $3,454 | The cap reaches only rental agreements of 1 year or more and month-to-month or undefined-term tenancies that have run a year. |
| Michigan | 1.5 months' rent | $1,361 | $2,042 | $3,403 | Any refundable fee or prepaid rent beyond the first rental period (e.g. |
| Iowa | 2 months' rent | $1,113 | $2,226 | $3,339 | — |
| Arkansas | 2 months' rent | $1,061 | $2,122 | $3,183 | The cap binds only landlords the deposit subchapter reaches. |
| New Mexico | 1 month' rent | $1,282 | $1,282 | $2,564 | That cap applies only to rental agreements of a duration less than one year, which includes month-to-month residencies (NMSA 47-8-18(A)(2)). |
| Nebraska | 1 month' rent | $1,260 | $1,260 | $2,520 | The ceiling covers security 'however denominated.' A pet deposit of up to one-fourth of one month's periodic rent may be demanded 'when appropriate,' so a tenancy with a pet can carry up to 1.25 months total. |
| Kansas | 1 month' rent | $1,212 | $1,212 | $2,424 | That is the ceiling for an unfurnished unit. |
| South Dakota | 1 month' rent | $1,187 | $1,187 | $2,374 | Landlord and tenant may agree on a larger deposit only where special conditions pose a danger to maintenance of the premises (SDCL 43-32-6.1). |
| Alabama | 1 month' rent | $1,170 | $1,170 | $2,340 | Additional amounts 'for pets, changes to the premises, or increased liability risks to the landlord or premises' sit outside the cap and are themselves uncapped (35-9A-201(a)). |
| North Dakota | 1 month' rent | $1,102 | $1,102 | $2,204 | Two exceptions raise the ceiling to two months' rent: a tenant convicted of a felony, and a tenant with a judgment against them for violating a previous rental agreement. |
The 21 states with no statutory cap
In these states no statute limits the deposit's size; the amount is set by the lease. Other deposit rules — return deadlines, itemization, interest — still apply and are on each state's page: Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Local law can be stricter than state law in either group; the 50-state deposit comparison and the locality records note where.
Method
The deposit caps are from the Landlord Atlas security-deposit records — each read from the state's official statute publisher, cited, and dated; the newest verification among them is July 12, 2026. The rent benchmark is HUD's FY2027 county-level Fair Market Rent file (published September 1, 2026, effective October 1, 2026), aggregated to a population-weighted state average for two-bedroom units — the same figures as the rent tables. "Maximum legal move-in cost" = one month's rent + (cap in months × that rent), rounded to the dollar. The metric deliberately excludes prepaid last month's rent, pet deposits, and fees: where those are lawful they can raise the real total, and in several states they count against the same ceiling instead — the note column and each state's page say which. The District of Columbia is not covered (the dataset's law records cover the 50 states). A cap can also carry conditions that narrow it — first-year-only in Pennsylvania, tenancy-length scaling in North Carolina, a senior rate in Connecticut — stated in the note column. Related: where the FY2027 rent benchmark rose and fell.