Maryland Rent Increase Rules for Landlords

Maryland has no statewide cap on rent increases, but two counties have one. In Montgomery County and Prince George's County, most older rental units may not go up by more than inflation plus 3% or 6%, whichever is lower, in a year, and Takoma Park runs its own program. Everywhere in the state, Real Property section 8-209 requires written notice before any increase: at least 90 days for a lease longer than one month and 60 days for a month-to-month tenancy.

What notice does Maryland require before a rent increase?

The statewide notice rule applies to every residential lease, in capped and uncapped areas alike:

Send the notice by first-class mail with a certificate of mailing, which is a Post Office receipt showing the date you mailed it. You may instead use email, text message, or a tenant portal, but only if the tenant chose electronic delivery and the method gives you proof the notice was transmitted. You cannot make electronic delivery a condition of accepting a rental application.

Two limits on this rule:

• It does not apply once you have given a written notice ending the tenancy under the state termination rule. That rule, Real Property section 8-402, requires 60 days' written notice to end a month-to-month tenancy or a lease for a stated term.
• A county or city may require more notice, and the local rule then controls.

During a fixed-term lease, the rent in the lease stays in place until the term ends unless the lease provides for a change. For a 12-month lease ending June 30, 2027, with the new rent starting July 1, 2027, mail the notice no later than April 2, 2027, which is 90 days ahead.

Montgomery County rent stabilization

Montgomery County's rent stabilization law took effect July 23, 2024. It covers most county-licensed rental units that are at least 23 years old. A unit reaches 23 years on January 1 of the 23rd year after the "year built" shown in the state property tax records (SDAT), so a building recorded as built in 2003 becomes covered on January 1, 2026.

The cap: each year the county's Department of Housing and Community Affairs (DHCA) sets the allowance at the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), the federal inflation measure for the Washington area, plus 3%, or 6%, whichever is lower. From July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027, CPI-U is 2.2% and the maximum increase is 5.2%. On a $2,000 rent, that is $2,000 x 0.052 = $104, for a new rent of $2,104.

Other limits on covered units:

• One increase per 12 months, and only at a lease renewal or new lease. A multi-year lease keeps the same rent for its whole term.
• If you take less than the full allowance, the unused part is "banked" for that unit and does not expire. The banked amount plus the current allowance cannot exceed 10% of the current rent in one increase.
• A vacancy does not reset the rent. When a unit becomes vacant, the new rent is limited to the rent on the date it became vacant plus the allowable increases, or the banked amount.
• Properties on the county's Troubled or At-Risk list may not raise rent until the designation is removed unless DHCA's Director approves a fair return application. Any increase while designated is limited to the amount the Director determines necessary to cover costs to improve habitability.
• Landlords can petition DHCA for more than the allowance through a fair return application or a capital improvement surcharge.

Main exemptions: units offered for rent for less than 23 years since construction; units owned by an individual, trust, or estate that owns two or fewer rental units in the county; accessory dwelling units (ADUs); units restricted to low- and moderate-income tenants by a government agreement, such as Moderately Priced Dwelling Units (tenant-based vouchers do not exempt a unit); and units with a DHCA-approved 23-year substantial renovation exemption. Qualifying renovations must be permanent, enhance the building's value, and cost at least 40% of the building's value as assessed by SDAT. The county law does not apply in Gaithersburg, Rockville, Takoma Park, Barnesville, or Laytonsville.

Notice: DHCA requires a written 90-day notice of rent increase for both covered and exempt units, delivered by U.S. mail or in person with a signed receipt.

Prince George's County rent stabilization

Prince George's County's Permanent Rent Stabilization and Protection Act of 2024 caps annual increases for most regulated units at 6% or CPI-U plus 3%, whichever is lower. Age-restricted senior housing is capped at 4.5% or CPI-U, whichever is lower. Because the CPI-U figure changes each year, confirm the current allowable percentage with the county's Department of Permitting, Inspections and Enforcement (DPIE) before you send notice.

Units not covered include those completed on or after January 1, 2000; units in medical, religious, and nonprofit facilities; owner-occupied group houses, ADUs, and certain condominiums; and hotels, motels, dormitories, and licensed assisted living facilities. Units also qualify for the exemption if the landlord owns five or fewer rental units in the county and is an individual, that individual's living trust, or a deceased person's trust or estate. To obtain DPIE's determination of exemption status, submit a request through the county's 311 service. DPIE enforces the law, with fines of $1,000 for a first violation and up to $5,000 for later violations.

Takoma Park and the rest of the state

Takoma Park has its own rent stabilization law, and Montgomery County's program does not apply there. If you own a unit in Takoma Park, get the current allowance and filing requirements from the city before raising rent. The same applies in Gaithersburg, Rockville, Barnesville, and Laytonsville: check with the city or town.

State law sets no cap on the amount of an increase. Outside the local programs above, including Baltimore City and counties such as Anne Arundel, Baltimore, and Howard, what you must follow is the state notice period, any longer local notice rule, and the lease.

Can a rent increase be retaliation?

Under Real Property section 8-208.1, a landlord may not arbitrarily raise rent, cut services, or end a periodic tenancy because the tenant in good faith complained about a lease violation, a legal violation, or a serious health or safety condition to the landlord or a public agency; filed or testified in a lawsuit involving the landlord; joined a tenants' organization; or called police or emergency services to the property.

An increase more than 6 months after the tenant's protected act is not treated as retaliatory under this section. The protection applies only if the tenant was current on rent at the time, unless the tenant was lawfully withholding rent. A court that finds retaliation can award damages of up to three months' rent plus attorney's fees and court costs. Keep a record of how you set each new rent so you can show the reason for it.

If a tenant refuses the new rent, see the Maryland eviction process and how to end a month-to-month rental agreement. A good-faith repair complaint is a protected act under that law, so check your Maryland maintenance and repair obligations, and for wording and timing a notice, see how to increase the rent.