What types of rental accommodations are covered by legislation governing residential tenancies in Maryland?

The laws cover residential rental premises containing one or more dwelling units, including single family dwellings, townhouses, apartments, condominiums, cooperatives, mobile homes. In addition to state laws, there are various county and city codes governing residential leases and rental agreements.

Is it necessary to have a written lease?

According to Maryland law, a lease means any oral or written agreement, express or implied, creating a tenant-landlord relationship. This includes subleases. If the landlord owns 5 or more dwelling units in the State of Maryland, the landlord MUST provide the tenant with a written lease. If the landlord fails to do so, the tenancy will be presumed to be 1 year, commencing on the date of the tenant’s occupancy, and the tenant may terminate the tenancy at any time by providing 1 month’s written notice.

Most oral leases are month-to-month tenancies, but one can have an oral lease for a year or less. Any lease for more than a year must be in writing to be enforceable.

What about a signed move-in move-out inspection report?

An inspection report is not required but is recommended as a safeguard. The tenant has the right to request to receive a written list of all existing damages to the premises. The landlord, upon request, must send the list by certified mail within 15 days after the tenant moves in. If the landlord fails to do so, the tenant can sue the landlord for three times the amount of the security deposit. The landlord must also inform the tenant that he/she has the right to be present for an inspection of the premises when the tenant moves out. Failure to do so means that the landlord cannot keep any part of the security deposit to cover damage to the premises.

Can the landlord charge a deposit?

Yes, the landlord can charge a security deposit up to an amount of not more than 2 months’ rent. The security deposit includes pet deposits and other amounts paid up front as security against damage, etc. The landlord must provide a receipt to the tenant for any deposit money received. The landlord must place the funds in an interest-bearing account which contains only security deposits and is not commingled with any other funds.

Within 45 days after the tenant moves out, the landlord must return the security deposit minus any allowable deductions for unpaid rent or for the costs of repairing damages caused by the tenant or tenant’s guests, together with a written statement setting out the details of the deductions and actual cost of repairs. The landlord may not keep any part of your security deposit for damages unless the landlord notified the tenant of the charges and actually made the repairs.

If the security deposit is $50 or more and the tenant lived in the property for more than 6 months, the landlord must pay interest on the security deposit. Interest is simple interest, accruing at the rate of 4% per year in 6-month intervals.

Some of these rules do not apply to a tenant who is evicted for breach of lease or who moves out of the property before the lease is over.

When is the landlord allowed to increase the rent?

Some areas of Maryland are subject to rent control. The rent may only be raised once in a 12-month period. In areas without rent controls, the amount of the rent increase is at the discretion of the landlord. If a rent increase is allowed under the law, the landlord must notify the tenant in writing 60 days prior to the rent being increased.

When is a rent payment considered to be late?

Rent is considered late after 10 days. However, the landlord can file for eviction if the rent is one day late.

Can the landlord charge a fee for late rent payments?

Yes, however, in order for the landlord to be able to charge a late fee, it must be called for in the lease. Late charges cannot exceed 5% of the amount due for the period which the payment is late. However, where the rent is paid in weekly installments, a penalty of $3 may be charged for each late payment, up to a maximum of $12 per month. Also, it is a one time charge. If January’s rent is still owing in February, there cannot be a second 5% charge.

How can a lease be terminated?

Maryland law imposes certain conditions on lease contracts, but in those areas where the law does not impose limits, the landlord and tenant are free to negotiate their own agreement. This is true as to the early termination of a lease agreement. Many leases have no clause providing for the cancellation of the lease. If a tenant wants to break a lease that does not have a cancellation provision, he/she should be aware that Maryland law only permits early termination of a lease because of conditions so severe as to make the continuation of the tenancy untenable or because a person has been called to military duty, under certain circumstances.

The law does allow a person on active military duty who has received a temporary duty order for a period of more than three months or an order for permanent change of station to end a lease by providing written notice and proof of assignment. The tenant who provides the proper notice will be responsible for no more than 30 days rent and the cost of repairing any damage to the premises caused by the tenant.

Generally, either the landlord or the tenant must give the other party 30 days written notice to vacate for single family units and 60 days for multi-family units.

Can a tenant assign a lease or sublet the premises?

Yes, the tenant can sublet or assign the lease to another qualified tenant, with the landlord’s consent, which cannot be arbitrarily withheld. This does not apply to rental units in condominiums or cooperatives where association documents prohibit subleasing, or to accessory apartments or mobile homes.

When is the landlord permitted to enter the premises?

There is no State law that sets out how much notice a landlord must give before entering the rental unit. Except in the case of emergency, when notice is not required, county and municipal housing or livability codes generally provide that a landlord may enter the premises upon reasonable notice, and upon receiving reasonable notice, tenants must give the landlord or agent access to the premises at reasonable times for making inspections, repairs, alterations, etc., as needed to comply with the provisions of the code. In Prince George’s County landlords are required to give tenants 24 hours written or oral notice of their intent to enter. Entry is allowed only during normal business hours or at a time that has been mutually agreed upon by both landlord and tenant.

On what grounds can a landlord evict a tenant?

A landlord can evict a tenant for failure to pay the rent, breach of the lease, holding over at the end of the term, and concerns about safety to other tenants, the landlord and the property. As soon as a rent due date has passed and the tenant has failed to pay the rent, the landlord or his agent or attorney may file a written complaint, asking for repossession of the premises, the amount of rent due, and court costs. The landlord must specify on the complaint: (a) the amount of rent due for each rental period under the lease; (b) the day the rent is due for each rental period; and (c) any late fees for overdue rent payments. The tenant will be ordered to appear in court for a hearing. If the landlord wins, the court will order the tenant to leave the premises within 4 days after the trial.

If a tenant has 3 judgments for possession entered against him/her in a 12-month period, if a landlord is successful in obtaining a 4th judgment, the tenant will be evicted, whether or not he/she has paid the past due rent.

If a lease provides that a tenant may be evicted for breach of the lease, and if the landlord should subsequently want to ask the help of the court to evict the tenant, the landlord must have given the tenant 1 month’s written notice that the tenant has violated the lease and the landlord wishes to repossess the premises. If however, the landlord feels that the tenant posed a danger to either themselves, other tenants, the landlord or the landlord’s property, 14 days is sufficient notice. Unless the tenant voluntarily vacates, the landlord must obtain a court order to repossess the rental unit.

A landlord cannot terminate a tenancy, decrease any services provided for in the lease or increase the rent, merely because a tenant exercises rights protected by law, including filing a complaint with DHCA or organizing or joining a tenants’ association. A landlord cannot issue a tenant a notice to vacate based on the tenant’s race, color, national origin, religion, sex, marital status, physical or mental disability, presence of children, ancestry, source of income, sexual orientation or age.

A landlord may not take possession of the premises or tenant’s property without legal process, unless the lease has been terminated by the parties or by action of law, and the tenant has abandoned his property. Forcible entry cannot be done without a court order.

The foregoing summary is provided for information purposes only and is not to be considered legal or business advice. The information may not be complete, accurate or applicable for any particular situation and should not be relied upon.