My husband and I have become reluctant landlords in the past year. We have 2 rental units on our property (we also live there). We have asked a prospective tenant for a security, and she says that “asking for a deposit and last month's rent is not allowed in NH”. Could someone clarify this for me? I’m trying to decipher the law, and what I read is that a landlord who has 6 units or more (not us) cannot ask for anything other than first and last month’s rent; but that “a security deposit is a deposit of money to the landlord to ensure that rent will be paid and other responsibilities of the lease performed (e.g., paying for damage caused by the tenant).” We also have a property in Maine up for sale, and the tenants who just moved out left a mess behind. We didn’t get a security deposit from them, and it’s going to cost us at least $300 to have it cleaned.

My husband and I have become reluctant landlords in the past year. We have 2 rental units on our property (we also live there). We have asked a prospective tenant for a security, and she says that “asking for a deposit and last month's rent is not allowed in NH”. Could someone clarify this for me? I’m trying to decipher the law, and what I read is that a landlord who has 6 units or more (not us) cannot ask for anything other than first and last month’s rent; but that “a security deposit is a deposit of money to the landlord to ensure that rent will be paid and other responsibilities of the lease performed (e.g., paying for damage caused by the tenant).” We also have a property in Maine up for sale, and the tenants who just moved out left a mess behind. We didn’t get a security deposit from them, and it’s going to cost us at least $300 to have it cleaned.
She's wrong...
You cannot ask for 1st, last & a security according to NH law. In this case.. to protect yourself, ask for 1st and security.. to be held in escrow, by law. This way you protect yourself from damages/lost rent. BTW... if they are giving you a hard time about deposits... rent to someone else.

THE LAW

New Hampshire's law on security deposits (RSA 540-A) defines a security deposit as any money that a tenant gives to his or her landlord other than the monthly rental payment. The name given to the payment - cleaning deposit, last month's rent in advance, etc. - does not matter. The amount is a "security deposit" if it is anything other than the monthly rent.

In New Hampshire, a landlord who owns more than six units can ask for no more than one month's rent or $100, whichever is larger, as a security deposit. The landlord must keep security deposits in a special escrow account or post a bond with the local municipality to secure repayment.

The tenant is entitled to a receipt for the deposit. The receipt must indicate the bank in which the deposit is being held, or state that there is a bond posted with the town clerk, and must state that the tenant has five (5) days to give the landlord a list of defects and damages in the apartment when she or he moved in. If the security deposit is held for more than 12 months, the landlord must pay at least the amount of interest she or he has actually earned on the money.