A field guide to the California 21-day deadline

Five moves between the keys
and the refund check.

DepositProof is a single spine for the California security deposit turnover — designed so the move-in photos, deduction receipts, and 21-day accounting letter are all the same document, ready for the tenant and ready for court.

Day 0
Move-in baseline
Photos & rent roll
Day 1
Move-out walk
Side-by-side capture
Day 3–10
Issues logged
Charge · note · flag
Day 7–18
Receipts in
Vendors, dates, ⁂ flags
Day 21
Packet sent
12 pages, signed

Under California Civil Code §1950.5, landlords have 21 days to return the security deposit or deliver an itemized written statement of deductions — with receipts attached. Miss the deadline and you forfeit every deduction. Arrive in small claims court without a court-ready security deposit deduction packet and the judge fills in the gaps. DepositProof builds that packet from the first key handoff.

Phase 01 · Day 0

Walk the unit before the keys change hands.

The baseline is the only documentation that ever gets harder to take later. DepositProof prompts you through every room on move-in day so the photos you'll lean on a year from now actually exist — and are tagged.

  • Room-by-room promptsWe suggest the rooms; you confirm or add.
  • Auto-thumbnailPhotos normalize and compress automatically — no 12MB iPhone shots clogging the packet.
  • One link to the tenantOptional acknowledgment by the incoming tenant, with a timestamp.
Move-in evidence
2410 Belmont · Unit B · Sep 12, 2024
Baseline complete
Kitchen
Kitchen8 photos
Living room
Living room6 photos
Bedroom 1
Bedroom 15 photos
Bedroom 2
Bedroom 24 photos
Bathroom
Bathroom4 photos
Hallway
Hallway3 photos
Move-in shot
Kitchen move-in
Sep 12, 2024 · 9:14 AM
Move-out · today
Kitchen burner damageBURNER
May 14, 2026 · 10:02 AM
Linked to issue · Burner damageauto-tagged
Phase 02 · Day 1

On move-out day, side-by-side capture.

The mobile capture flow pulls the move-in shot of the same wall as you're holding the phone up. New issues get tagged before the shutter clicks. Two taps from the front door to a tagged photo on the right tenant.

  • Tag-before-shutterRoom + issue pre-filled by your position in the walk.
  • Side-by-side comparisonMove-in shot of the same wall, automatically.
  • Offline-tolerantBasements, back rooms — photos sync when you're back on cell.
Phase 03 · Day 3–10

Three outcomes. No grey area.

Each issue resolves to one of three things: charge the tenant, note-but-don't-charge, or flag for follow-up. The 'noted' items still appear in the packet — transparency is what disarms disputes.

  • Charge tenantAmount, vendor, photos, receipt — all in one place.
  • Note, don't chargeAbsorb with a reason. Optional 'show in packet' toggle.
  • Flag for follow-upOut of v1 packet, into your escalation queue. Nothing falls off the radar.
Issue · #3 of 6
Burner damage · kitchen
Captured May 14, 10:02 AM · 3 photos
Outcome
Charge tenant
$240.00 · Burner damage · BayAppliance estimate
Selected
Note, don't charge
Tile chip · backsplash · wear & tear
Flag for follow-up
Hallway scuff · need contractor walk
Item readinessWell-supported
Receipts & invoices
4 attached · 1 estimate
Sparkle Co. #4421
Cleaning · stove · range hood · May 16
Invoice
$295.00
BayAppliance · estimate
Burner repair · pending invoice · May 22
Estimate
$240.00
FloorPro #882
Carpet replacement · 220 sq ft · May 19
Invoice
$420.00
CleanHaul receipt
Trash haul · 2 cuyd · May 15
Invoice
$35.00
Total receipts$990.00
Phase 04 · Day 7–18

Receipts attach to deductions, not folders.

The contractor invoice belongs with the burner damage. The vendor quote belongs with the carpet line. Receipts that are still estimates stay flagged with a ⁂ in the packet — disclosed, not hidden.

  • Drag-and-drop attachFrom email or your phone, straight onto the deduction.
  • Estimate-only? ⁂We footnote it in the packet so disputes don't surprise you.
  • Vendor historyPull a previous vendor's rate sheet onto a new tenant in one click.
Phase 05 · Day 21

The packet you'd want, if you were the tenant.

A 12-page accounting: cover letter, itemized table, before/after spreads, and a receipts appendix. The same document, every time. Transparent. Boring. Defensible.

  • Formal accounting coverLetterhead, statute reference, signed, dated.
  • Itemized tableEvery line cross-referenced to its evidence pages.
  • Receipts appendixVendors and amounts in one tidy spread.
Download a sample packetStart your first tenant
Itemized Deductions
2410 Belmont · Unit B
ItemAmount
Burner damage$240
Carpet replace.$420
Deep cleaning$295
Trash haul$35
Total withheld$990
Noted, not charged: Tile chip · backsplash (normal wear)
Issue #1 · Burner damage
Move-in
Move-out
BayAppliance estimate $240 · photo 2 of 3
DepositProof
May 23, 2026
Jordan Lee
2410 Belmont Ave, Unit B
San Francisco, CA 94117
Re: Security Deposit Accounting
Dear Jordan Lee,

Pursuant to California Civil Code §1950.5, this letter provides an itemized accounting of deductions from the security deposit for the above-referenced property.
Respectfully,
Alex Chen
Owner, 2410 Belmont Ave
12 pages · letter · portrait
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California's 21-day security deposit deadline is shorter than you think.
Start documenting on move-in day.

Start your first tenant