How to Fire Your Property Manager in South Dakota

A step-by-step guide for South Dakota landlords switching property managers, covering written management agreements, broker trust accounts, tenant deposits and what to collect before you cut ties.

Last updated September 23, 2026

Missed repairs, slow replies, a statement that never adds up. Most landlords wait too long to make the call.

South Dakota licenses property managers as a category of their own, and the rules that govern broker trust accounts apply to them in full. That gives you a regulator to call if the handover stalls. Here is how to make the switch without losing a deposit, a tenant or a month of rent.

Step 1. Read your management agreement

South Dakota requires the agreement to be in writing. A property manager has to have a written management agreement with the client specifying the duties and conditions. Automatic renewal is allowed, provided the agreement lets either side cancel on written notice under terms the two of you accepted (ARSD 20:69:14:06).

So your contract decides how you exit. Look for four things.

Notice period. Thirty days' written notice is common.
Termination fee. Some agreements charge one, some do not.
Leasing fee clawbacks. Check what you owe for tenants the manager placed.
Who "owns" the tenant relationship. Some agreements try to charge a fee if you keep a tenant they found.

If the manager broke the agreement, by ignoring repairs or mishandling money, you may be able to end it sooner. That is a question for a South Dakota attorney.

Step 2. Send written notice

Put it in writing, by email and by whatever method the agreement names. State the end date, ask for a full handover by that date, and list what you expect back (see Step 4).

Keep the tone flat and factual. You want your records, not an argument.

Step 3. Know the trust account and records rules

Your manager is not holding your money loosely. A property manager has to deposit all security deposits, damage deposits, advance fees and rental proceeds in a federally insured financial institution, give the client a full accounting of the funds, and disburse rental proceeds the way the management contract says (ARSD 20:69:14:11).

Every trust account requirement the licensing law puts on real estate brokers applies to property managers too (ARSD 20:69:14:04). That pulls in the broker rules directly. Money belonging to a principal goes to that principal, or into a special trust account at a federally insured institution on the first legal banking day after acceptance of the contract, with monthly reconciliation against the bank statement, the trust ledger and the check register (SDCL § 36-21A-80). Deposit slips have to name the principal, and a ledger sheet has to be kept for each principal showing deposits and withdrawals (§ 36-21A-82).

Property management accounting adds its own layer. A receipts and disbursements journal or check register for each trust account, tenant security deposits tracked separately in the owner's ledger or a tenant ledger, postings at least monthly, and every trust account reconciled at least monthly (ARSD 20:69:14:12).

There is no fixed handover deadline in South Dakota. The code does not give you a hard number of days for a departing manager to return records and funds. What it gives you is a standard. Failure to account for or remit, within a reasonable time, money coming into a licensee's possession that belongs to others is unprofessional conduct (SDCL § 36-21A-71(5)). Records of the receipt, deposit, maintenance and withdrawal of client funds have to be kept for four years after the management contract ends (ARSD 20:69:14:11), so a manager who says the file is gone is telling you something worth writing down.

If your money or your records do not show up in a reasonable time, file a complaint with the South Dakota Real Estate Commission.

Step 4. Collect everything

Ask for all of this before the end date.

Security deposits for every tenant, with the amount held for each one
The trust account ledger for your property, showing rents collected, fees taken and what is still owed to you
The receipts and disbursements journal or check register covering your units
Signed leases, renewals and addenda
Any move-in condition reports tenants signed
Tenant contact details and payment history
Open maintenance requests, vendor contacts, invoices and warranties
Keys, fobs, garage remotes and codes
Year-to-date income and expense reports for your taxes

Step 5. Move the security deposits

Once the deposits land back with you, South Dakota's deposit law is yours to follow. The cap is one month's rent, with more allowed only by written agreement where special conditions pose a danger to maintenance of the premises (SDCL § 43-32-6.1).

The state does not require a self-managing owner to hold deposits in a separate escrow account and does not require interest. Open a separate account anyway. When a tenant moves out you have two weeks after the tenancy ends, counting from when you have their mailing address, to return the deposit or send a written statement giving the specific reason for withholding it. A written request from the tenant triggers a 45-day deadline for an itemised accounting, and bad-faith retention can cost you the whole deposit plus punitive damages up to $200 (§ 43-32-24).

Check the amount held against each lease before you accept the transfer. A number that does not match is easier to fix during the stretch when the old manager still wants your final payment.

Step 6. Tell your tenants

Tenants care about three things. Where to pay rent, who to call for repairs, and whether their deposit is safe. Send one clear message covering all three, dated, with the day the change takes effect.

Give them your entry practice in the same message. You owe reasonable notice before entering, and 24 hours' written notice is presumed reasonable (§ 43-32-32).

Step 7. Take over the day-to-day

Line up your vendors, set up rent collection, and get a maintenance line that picks up at 2am. This is where most landlords end up back where they started, holding a phone that never stops ringing.

Who can manage property for pay in South Dakota

A property manager is anyone who, for a fee, commission or other valuable consideration, negotiates the rental or leasing of real estate, lists property for rent or lease, collects rent, or advertises themselves as doing any of it (SDCL § 36-21A-10). No person may perform an act covered by the chapter without an active license from the commission, and no one may collect a fee for it without complying with the chapter (§ 36-21A-28).

The licence is a restricted broker's licence. The commission issues them to property managers and to residential rental agents, and working beyond what the licence authorises can cost the licensee the licence and bring a prosecution (§ 36-21A-47). A person cannot act as a property manager in South Dakota without holding one, and firms are licensed as firms (ARSD 20:69:14:02).

You are exempt on your own property. The licensing chapter does not reach an owner or lessor performing these acts on property they own or lease, as part of managing or investing in it, and it covers their regular employees doing the same work (§ 36-21A-29(1)). Employees of an exempt party whose principal duties lie elsewhere are exempt too (§ 36-21A-29(11)).

If you hire a new manager, check the licence with the South Dakota Real Estate Commission before you sign.

Your switching checklist

Read the written agreement for notice, fees and clawbacks
Send written notice with an end date
Demand the trust ledger and every dollar held, and hold the manager to a reasonable time
Collect deposits, ledgers, leases, condition reports and keys
Reconcile each deposit against each lease before you accept it
Move deposits to your own account and tell each tenant in writing
Tell tenants where to pay and who to call

Switch to Taz

Taz is an AI property manager built for landlords who have been let down before. It answers tenants day and night, routes repairs to vendors, sends rent reminders and keeps every record in one place, for a flat monthly price per door instead of a cut of your rent. See how Taz works.

Where this guide says a state has no rule on something, that means we found no statute setting one, which is not the same as none existing. Local ordinances and court practice can add requirements. Confirm anything you plan to rely on.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Your management agreement and your specific facts matter. Talk to a South Dakota attorney before ending a contract. Last checked September 2026.