Maryland eviction law

Before you can file for possession for unpaid rent, you must give the tenant a written notice of your intent to file, on the form created by the Maryland Judiciary, giving the tenant 10 days to pay. It is a notice of intent to file, not a notice to quit: you may file in District Court only if the tenant does not cure within the 10 days.

Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-401(c)(1), (c)(2)

• Deliver the notice by first-class mail with a certificate of mailing, by posting it on the door, or by email, text or tenant portal if the tenant chose electronic delivery, with proof of transmission. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-401(c)(2)
• Your complaint must state the date you gave the notice, and the tenant may challenge it. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-401(c)(3)
• After judgment, a tenant can usually still keep the home by paying all past due rent plus court-awarded costs and fees, in cash, certified check or money order, before the eviction is carried out. This right does not apply to a tenant against whom three judgments of possession for unpaid rent were entered in the 12 months before the case was filed. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-401(h) See Eviction process on the Maryland page

To end a lease early for a breach other than unpaid rent, the lease must allow it and you must give the tenant 30 days' written notice that they are violating the lease and that you want the home back. The notice period is 14 days when the breach involves behavior showing a clear and imminent danger of serious harm to people or property.

Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-402.1(a)(1)

• The statute does not expressly give a right to cure; you may file only if the tenant refuses to comply after the notice period, and the court orders possession only if it finds the breach substantial and warranting eviction. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-402.1(a)(1), (b)(1)
• Accepting a payment after you give the notice does not waive the notice or a judgment for possession unless you both specifically agree otherwise. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-402.1(d)

Evictions in Maryland go through the District Court: failure to pay rent, holding over after proper notice, or breach of lease. In a failure-to-pay case the court issues the warrant of restitution if the tenant does not comply within 7 business days after a judgment for you; in holdover and breach-of-lease cases it issues the warrant with the judgment. A sheriff or constable carries it out.

Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-401 Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-402 Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-402.1 Maryland Courts: Housing Cases and hearing preparation

• At least 6 days before the scheduled eviction, you must notify the tenant of the date by first-class mail with a certificate of mailing, by posting on the front door with a date-stamped photo, and by email or text if you have the address or number. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-407(b)
• If you do not order the warrant within 60 days after judgment or the end of any stay, the judgment for possession is stricken. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-401(f)(1)(ii)
• In a jurisdiction with rental licensing, your complaint must state, with supporting facts, that the property is licensed, exempt, or why it is unlicensed. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-406(b)
• Evictions are stayed during certain extreme weather conditions. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-401(f)(2)
• Eligible tenants have access to legal representation in eviction cases under the state's access to counsel program. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-902
• Prepare a hearing file that makes each disputed point easy to follow: the lease and amendments, dated notices and delivery records, an updated rent ledger, payment receipts, relevant messages and photographs. Separate the amount claimed from amounts already paid or credited, and put events in date order. Tenants should bring records supporting their response as well. Check the hearing notice for when and where to attend; settlement discussions do not by themselves cancel a court date. The Maryland Courts housing guide explains the case types, evidence preparation and access to legal help. Maryland Courts: Housing Cases and hearing preparation

You may not take or threaten to take possession by locking the tenant out, or by willfully cutting heat, running water, hot water, electricity or gas to force the tenant out. Possession comes only through a court's warrant of restitution carried out by the sheriff or constable, or when the tenant abandons or surrenders the home.

Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-216

• A tenant locked out or cut off can recover actual damages and reasonable attorney's fees and costs. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-216
• After a final court order of possession, you may stop paying for a utility if you give the tenant reasonable notice and a chance to open the account in their own name. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-216(a)(3)(ii)
• A lease may not allow you to take possession of the home or the tenant's belongings without legal process. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-208(d)(6)

Maryland's landlord and tenant law sets no storage period or sale procedure for belongings a tenant leaves behind. A lease may not let you take the tenant's belongings without legal process unless the lease has ended and the tenant abandoned them.

Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-208(d)(6)

• When a warrant of restitution is carried out, the official removes the tenant's belongings from the home. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-401(f)(1)(i) See Eviction process on the Maryland page
• The required pre-eviction notice warns the tenant that belongings left inside may be lost and that local laws and practices on disposal vary. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-407(b)

You may not bring or threaten an eviction, raise rent or cut services arbitrarily, or end a periodic tenancy because a tenant made a good faith complaint to you or a public agency, sued or testified against you, joined a tenants' organization, or because someone called police or emergency services.

Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-208.1(a)

• The tenant can raise retaliation as a defense or sue; a court can award up to three months' rent plus reasonable attorney's fees and costs, and a tenant who claims retaliation in bad faith can owe you the same. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-208.1(c)
• The tenant must be current on rent to get relief, unless rent is being withheld under the lease, the rent escrow law or a local law. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-208.1(d)
• An action taken more than six months after the tenant's protected act may not be treated as retaliatory. There is no presumption of retaliation inside the six months. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-208.1(e)