Maryland Fair Chance Housing Act Takes Effect October 1, 2026

Maryland Fair Chance Housing Act Takes Effect: What Changes for Landlords and Renters on October 1, 2026

Maryland's Fair Chance Housing Act became operative on October 1, 2026. Senate Bill 937, enacted as Chapter 752 of the 2026 Laws of Maryland, creates a new Subtitle 2A in the Real Property Article that controls when a landlord with five or more units may ask about, obtain, and act on a rental applicant's criminal history.

Information last verified on October 1, 2026.

Status: SB 937 passed the Senate 32-10 on March 23, 2026 and the House 97-36 on April 13, 2026, with the Senate concurring in the House amendments 31-13 the same day. Governor Wes Moore approved it on May 26, 2026 as Chapter 752. Section 2 of the Act provides that it "shall take effect October 1, 2026." Implementing regulations and the state model notice are not yet published.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers Maryland state law as enacted in the 2026 Regular Session: Chapter 752 (SB 937), Chapters 773 and 772 (SB 335 and HB 315), and Chapter 664 (SB 12). It does not cover federal Fair Housing Act disparate-impact guidance, the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act duties that tenant-screening companies owe separately, or county and municipal ordinances. For how criminal-record screening works in Maryland outside the rental context, see our Maryland background check guide.

What Happened

The Maryland General Assembly passed Senate Bill 937, titled "Landlord and Tenant - Residential Leases - Prospective Tenant Criminal History Records Check (Maryland Fair Chance Housing Act)," sponsored by Senator Henson. It cleared the Senate on third reading 32-10 on March 23, 2026, passed the House 97-36 on April 13, 2026 after a floor amendment from Delegate Charkoudian was adopted, and the Senate concurred in the House amendments and passed it 31-13 the same day. Governor Wes Moore approved it on May 26, 2026, and it became Chapter 752 of the 2026 Laws of Maryland.

The chapter text adds Real Property sections 8-2A-01 through 8-2A-12, under a new subtitle headed "Discriminatory Use of Criminal History in Residential Leasing." It also amends Real Property 8-218(b)(2)(i), the provision describing what a "reusable tenant screening report" must contain, by subjecting that report's criminal-history component to the new subtitle. A proposed cut of that report's criminal look-back from seven years to three did not survive: the chapter print shows the bracketed "7" restored and the inserted "3" struck, so the seven-year window stands. The Department of Legislative Services fiscal and policy note on the enrolled bill likewise states current law as seven years and reports no change to it.

The Act is short on preamble and long on sequence. Its central definition is the one that drives everything else:

"CONDITIONAL OFFER" MEANS AN OFFER TO LEASE A RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY TO A PROSPECTIVE TENANT THAT IS CONTINGENT ON A SUBSEQUENT INQUIRY INTO THE PROSPECTIVE TENANT'S CRIMINAL HISTORY.

Chapter 752, 2026 Laws of Maryland, adding Md. Code Ann., Real Prop. 8-2A-01(B).

The Department of Legislative Services summarized the finished bill the same way in its enrolled, revised fiscal and policy note: the provisions "apply only to a landlord that manages or owns five or more residential rental units in the State," violators "are subject to a civil penalty of up to $500 for each violation," and the provisions "preempt and supersede any local law or ordinance comparable in subject matter."

The Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development issued a public notice flagging October 1 as the effective date for this Act and the companion housing laws, and stating that it is developing voluntary model forms that housing providers are not required to use.

What the Law Actually Says

Who is covered, and who is not

Real Property 8-2A-02(a) limits the subtitle to a landlord that "manages or owns five or more residential rental units in the State," including units the landlord owns or controls "in whole or in part," "directly or indirectly," or "through one or more legal entities." That last clause is the operative one for portfolio owners: holding each building in its own LLC does not drop the owner below the threshold. Subsection (b) excludes owner-occupied residential rental units.

One more threshold rule sits in 8-2A-03: a landlord that conducts a criminal history records check "shall do so for every prospective tenant." The subtitle does not require any landlord to run a check at all. It regulates the landlords who choose to.

Before the conditional offer

Real Property 8-2A-05(a)(1) is the general bar. Before extending a conditional offer, a landlord may not request or require an applicant to disclose on a housing application whether the applicant has a criminal history or has been accused of or charged with any crimes, and may not make an oral or written inquiry about the applicant's criminal history.

Paragraph (a)(2) is the carve-out, and it is the part most easily misread. Before extending a conditional offer, a landlord may require information on, and may reject an application on the grounds of, whether the applicant has been convicted of a short enumerated list: manufacturing, distributing, dispensing or producing methamphetamine on the premises of federally assisted housing, for a potential tenancy in federally assisted housing; a sexual offense under Title 3, Subtitle 3 of the Criminal Law Article; child pornography under Criminal Law 11-207; murder in the first degree under Criminal Law 2-201; murder in the second degree under Criminal Law 2-204; or human trafficking under Criminal Law 3-1102. The same paragraph reaches applicants subject to a lifetime registration requirement under a state sex offender registration program, applicants who have ever been subject to a registration requirement under a state or federal sex offender registration program, and applicants ever convicted in another state or a federal court of a crime with the same criminal elements as a crime listed in the section.

So "conditional offer first" is the rule, not the whole rule. The enacted text draws a line between a narrow set of named convictions and registry status, which may be asked about at the front of the process, and everything else, which may not.

Paragraph (b) adds a duty that runs alongside both stages: in response to the results of a criminal history records check, an applicant may provide, and the landlord "shall consider," evidence of inaccuracies in the records, evidence of rehabilitation, and any other mitigating factors.

Paperwork due before the application fee

Real Property 8-2A-04(b) attaches a disclosure duty to the moment money changes hands. Before accepting an application fee, a landlord must give the applicant written notice about the use of a criminal history records check in determining eligibility, including a statement that a conviction for a crime listed in 8-2A-05 and 8-2A-06 may be considered "only after the extension of a conditional offer," plus information on the applicant's ability to submit evidence of inaccuracies, rehabilitation and mitigating factors. Subsection (c) requires the landlord to notify the applicant that an individualized assessment will be conducted.

Testing and substance-use records

Real Property 8-2A-04(a) bars two practices outright. A landlord may not require a prospective tenant to submit to a drug or alcohol test, and may not request or require an applicant to consent to the release of information about the applicant from a program for the prevention and treatment of substance use disorders.

After the conditional offer

Real Property 8-2A-06(a) is where a check may finally run. After the extension of a conditional offer, a landlord may conduct a criminal history records check and consider the following convictions as potential grounds for withdrawal: any felony conviction under the Criminal Law Article if the conviction occurred within 5 years immediately preceding the rental application; any convictions listed in 8-2A-05 that the applicant has not previously disclosed; or any conviction in another state court or a federal court of a crime with the same elements as a felony in Maryland, if that conviction occurred within 5 years immediately preceding the rental application.

Withdrawal is not automatic even when a listed conviction turns up. Subsection (b) sets the standard:

A LANDLORD MAY WITHDRAW A CONDITIONAL OFFER BASED ON A PROSPECTIVE TENANT'S CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORDS CHECK ONLY IF THE LANDLORD DETERMINES THAT THE WITHDRAWAL IS NECESSARY TO FULFILL A SUBSTANTIAL, LEGITIMATE, AND NONDISCRIMINATORY INTEREST.

Chapter 752, 2026 Laws of Maryland, adding Md. Code Ann., Real Prop. 8-2A-06(b).

Subsection (c) then requires written notice of the withdrawal containing a specific reason for it and a statement that the applicant may request a reassessment by giving the landlord written evidence, signed under penalty of perjury, of inaccuracies, rehabilitation, or any other mitigating factors.

Subsection (d) tells the landlord what a reassessment must weigh: the nature and severity of the offense; the applicant's age when it occurred; the time elapsed since it occurred; any information the applicant produced about rehabilitation and good conduct; the degree to which the offense, if it recurred, would negatively impact the safety of other tenants or the property; and whether the offense occurred on property the applicant rented or leased.

Subsection (e) adds a file-access right. Within 30 days after the notice of withdrawal, the applicant may request a copy of all information the landlord relied on, including criminal history records, and the landlord must provide it within 10 days of a timely request.

Advertising, data handling, and the no-claim shield

Real Property 8-2A-07(a) provides that, unless required by federal law, a landlord may not knowingly or intentionally publish or cause to be published any advertisement expressly stating that the landlord will not consider an applicant who has been arrested or convicted of a crime. Subsection (b) extends the same federal-law qualifier to any statement, advertisement, publication, sign, lease application form or inquiry expressing, directly or indirectly, a limitation or specification about criminal history records inconsistent with the subtitle. Subsection (c) bars a landlord, unless otherwise required by law, from disseminating an applicant's criminal history records to a person not expected to use them to evaluate the applicant consistently with the subtitle, or from using the records for a purpose inconsistent with the subtitle.

Running in the other direction, 8-2A-08 provides that a landlord's decision to lease to a person with a criminal history, or a decision not to obtain a records check at all, "may not be the basis for a claim against the landlord."

Penalty, preemption, and the agency work still outstanding

Chapter 752 provides that "a person who violates this subtitle is subject to a civil penalty not exceeding $500 for each violation." The enacted subtitle also preempts and supersedes "any local law or ordinance comparable in subject matter," and directs the Department of Housing and Community Development to adopt regulations to carry it out. Real Property 8-2A-09 requires the Office of Tenant and Landlord Affairs within DHCD to develop and publish on its website a model notice document, which must include language advising an applicant of a withdrawal or other adverse housing action based on criminal history, and language notifying the applicant of the right to request a copy of all information the landlord relied on and the right to file a complaint under Commercial Law 13-401.

Worth noting for anyone comparing the introduced bill with the enacted one: the final text strikes the amendment that would have added a violation of the subtitle to the list of unfair, abusive or deceptive trade practices in Commercial Law 13-301(14), and strikes the Attorney General complaint-data collection and annual publication provisions, while keeping the model-notice reference to Commercial Law 13-401 and settling on the $500 figure in place of an earlier $1,000 ceiling.

The Companion Laws

Housing subsidies and credit screening (Chapters 773 and 772)

SB 335 and its cross-filed twin HB 315, "Landlord and Tenant - Discrimination in Housing for Income-Based Housing Subsidies and Positive Rental History Reporting," were approved on May 26, 2026 as Chapters 773 and 772 and took effect October 1, 2026. Both add State Government 20-705.1 in identical terms.

The new section defines an "income-based housing subsidy" as recurring monetary assistance to a landlord from a governmental entity or nonprofit organization intended to defray a tenant's rent obligation in whole or in part, and says it includes certificates and vouchers issued under the United States Housing Act of 1937. Subsection (b) provides that, except as authorized under federal law, a landlord of residential rental property that uses financial information, including credit history, as part of a rental application may not refuse to rent to an applicant who pays rent with the assistance of such a subsidy on the basis of the applicant's income, the applicant's credit score or lack of a credit score, or adverse credit history that arose during a period when the applicant did not have the subsidy, if that period is confirmed by the applicant, voucher paperwork, documents from a public housing authority, or a public housing authority responding to the landlord's request.

The section leaves several landlord tools intact. Subsection (e) permits a landlord to require verification that a tenant has sufficient income to pay the portion of rent not covered by the subsidy, using an income-to-tenant's-portion-of-rent ratio "substantially equivalent" to the ratio the landlord uses for nonsubsidized tenants. Subsection (f) permits refusal based on any commercially reasonable and nondiscriminatory use of a reference from a previous or current landlord, or of the tenant's history of violating a lease, failing to pay utilities, creating a nuisance, or damaging property. Subsection (d) preserves financial-information collection where a governmental, quasi-governmental or nonprofit funder requires income qualification for income-restricted units as a condition of funding.

Enforcement runs through the fair-housing machinery rather than a new penalty: the same chapters amend State Government 20-701(c) and 20-1020(e) so that an act prohibited under 20-705.1 is a "discriminatory housing practice," which brings it within the Maryland Commission on Civil Rights process. That sits alongside the rest of the state's tenancy rules covered in our overview of Maryland landlord-tenant law.

Positive rent reporting (same chapters)

The second half of Chapters 773 and 772 adds Real Property 8-208.4, with a different coverage threshold from the Fair Chance Housing Act: it "applies only to a landlord that owns six or more residential rental units in the State." A covered landlord offering a dwelling unit for rent must include in a written lease the option to have the tenant's positive rental payment history reported to at least one consumer reporting agency. "Positive rental payment history" is defined as information about a tenant's complete and timely rent payments, and expressly excludes any instance in which a tenant did not completely or timely pay.

The timing is split. For a lease entered into on or after October 1, 2026, the offer must be made at the time of the lease agreement and at least once annually afterward. For leases entered into before October 1, 2026, the offer must be made no later than January 1, 2027, and at least once annually afterward, delivered by first-class mail with a certificate of mailing, by a tracked delivery service, or electronically if the tenant has elected electronic notices.

If a tenant opts in, the landlord "may require that the tenant pay a fee not to exceed the lesser of the actual cost to the landlord to provide the service or $10 per month." Payment or nonpayment of that fee may not itself be reported to a consumer reporting agency, the fee is not rent and may not be credited against rent, and a tenant who falls 30 days or more behind on it may have reporting stopped and may not re-elect reporting for at least 6 months. A tenant may stop reporting at any time by written request, subject to the same 6-month wait before re-electing. The Secretary of Housing and Community Development must adopt regulations specifying the form of the offer, which the statute requires to disclose the participating agencies, the fee amount, and the opt-in and opt-out mechanics.

Air conditioning (Chapter 664), which is not an October 1 statute but has an October 1 trigger

SB 12 became Chapter 664 and, by its own Section 3, took effect June 1, 2026, not today. It adds Real Property 8-122, which applies only to residential rental units in apartment buildings with 10 or more individual dwelling units and does not apply to a unit located on property listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The compliance dates are staged inside the section: June 1, 2026 for newly constructed units and for units where, at any time on or after January 1, 2025, the landlord equipped or provided air conditioning or a lease required it, and "BEGINNING OCTOBER 1, 2026, FOR RESIDENTIAL RENTAL UNITS THAT UNDERGO RENOVATION THAT INCLUDES THE REPLACEMENT OR SUBSTANTIAL UPGRADE OF ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS OR HEATING SYSTEMS." Where the section applies, each year from June 1 to September 30 the landlord must maintain, or keep a tenant-controlled system capable of maintaining, a temperature no greater than 80 degrees Fahrenheit measured 3 feet above the floor in each habitable space. Section 2 of the chapter limits the Act to prospective application and excludes construction or renovation permitted before the effective date.

Analysis: Why This Matters

The following is analysis from the Recording Law Editorial Team.

The structural choice in Chapter 752 is sequencing, not prohibition. Maryland did not forbid landlords from looking at criminal records. It moved the look to a later point in the process and attached a reason-giving duty to acting on what it shows. An applicant who is screened out at the front of the funnel never learns why; an applicant who is screened out after a conditional offer gets a written reason, a defined reassessment, and a right to the file. That is a transparency rule wearing the clothes of a screening rule.

The two-list design is the part worth reading closely, because the pre-offer carve-out in 8-2A-05(a)(2) is doing more work than a summary usually conveys. A landlord may still ask about, and reject on, the named offenses and registry status at the application stage. What changes is that general criminal-history questions, open-ended inquiries, and the catch-all application checkbox are off the table until a conditional offer exists.

The thresholds are also not uniform across the day's statutes, which matters for a small owner trying to determine what applies. Chapter 752 reaches landlords that manage or own five or more units, counting indirect and entity-held interests. The rent-reporting duty in Real Property 8-208.4 reaches landlords that own six or more. The air-conditioning section reaches apartment buildings with 10 or more dwelling units. Three statutes passed in the same session use three different counts.

Two features of the enacted text are easy to miss. First, the civil penalty of up to $500 per violation is the whole of the Act's express penalty: the amendment that would have routed violations into the Consumer Protection Act's enforcement machinery was struck before enrollment, even though the required model notice still points applicants to Commercial Law 13-401. Second, the subtitle preempts and supersedes any local law or ordinance "comparable in subject matter," so Maryland's statewide rule is now the ceiling as well as the floor for the subject it covers. The chapter text does not name any particular county or municipal ordinance, and how the clause interacts with specific local enactments is a question the statute leaves to whoever has to apply it.

Readers comparing states should note that fair-chance tenant-screening statutes are not converging on one design. Our coverage of Washington's fair-chance hiring law shows a different sequencing model in the employment context, and the categories of what may be considered, the look-back windows and the enforcement route differ substantially between jurisdictions. Nothing about Maryland's text should be read across to another state's.

How This Affects You

For applicants in Maryland, the operative general change is informational. If a covered landlord withdraws a conditional offer over a records check, the written notice must state a specific reason and explain the reassessment route, and a request made within 30 days obliges the landlord to hand over the information it relied on within 10 days. Evidence of inaccuracies, rehabilitation and mitigating factors is something the statute says a landlord "shall consider," though at the reassessment stage it must be written and signed under penalty of perjury.

For landlords at or above five units, the compliance surface is mostly paperwork and ordering: a written pre-fee notice, an individualized-assessment notice, a conditional offer before any general criminal-history inquiry, a withdrawal notice that gives reasons, a reassessment that walks the six statutory factors, and a records-request response inside 10 days. Landlords at six or more units have a separate rent-reporting offer to build into new leases now, and a January 1, 2027 deadline for leases signed before October 1, 2026. Readers who want the broader state-by-state picture on record screening can start from our background check law hub.

What Happens Next

Three things are still outstanding. The Department of Housing and Community Development must adopt regulations to carry out Subtitle 2A, and its Office of Tenant and Landlord Affairs must develop and publish the model notice document the statute requires; DHCD's public notice says it is developing voluntary model forms and that housing providers are not required to use them. The Secretary of Housing and Community Development must separately adopt regulations specifying the form of the positive rent-reporting offer under Real Property 8-208.4, a form landlords need before the January 1, 2027 deadline for existing leases bites. And the preemption clause in the new subtitle has not yet been tested against any particular local ordinance.

We will update this article when DHCD publishes the model notice or proposes regulations, and when the Annotated Code text for the renumbered sections is posted.

This article is legal information, not legal advice. It describes Maryland statutes as enacted and does not assess any particular tenancy, application, or rental property. Statutes are amended and agencies issue regulations that change how a rule operates in practice. Consult a licensed Maryland attorney about your own situation.

Related articles

• Maryland background check laws
• Maryland landlord-tenant laws
• US background check law hub
• Washington's Fair Chance Act, HB 1747

Last updated: 2026-10-01. Details verified as of 2026-10-01.

Frequently Asked Questions

When did the Maryland Fair Chance Housing Act take effect?

October 1, 2026. Section 2 of Chapter 752 (SB 937, 2026 Regular Session) states that the Act 'shall take effect October 1, 2026'; the Governor approved it on May 26, 2026, which is the enactment date and not the operative date.

Which Maryland landlords does the Fair Chance Housing Act cover?

Real Property 8-2A-02(a) applies the subtitle only to a landlord that manages or owns five or more residential rental units in Maryland, counting units owned or controlled in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, or through one or more legal entities. Subsection (b) excludes owner-occupied residential rental units.

Can a Maryland landlord ask about criminal history on the rental application?

Not in general. Real Property 8-2A-05(a)(1) bars disclosure requests and oral or written criminal-history inquiries before a conditional offer, but 8-2A-05(a)(2) permits pre-offer questions about, and rejection over, a specific enumerated list including sexual offenses, child pornography, first- and second-degree murder, human trafficking and sex-offender registration status.

What convictions can a Maryland landlord consider after making a conditional offer?

Real Property 8-2A-06(a) lists any felony conviction under the Criminal Law Article within 5 years immediately preceding the rental application, any conviction from the pre-offer list that the applicant did not previously disclose, and any out-of-state or federal conviction with the same elements as a Maryland felony within the same 5-year window.

Does a Maryland landlord have to explain withdrawing a conditional offer?

Yes. Real Property 8-2A-06(c) requires written notice of the withdrawal that includes a specific reason and a statement that the applicant may request a reassessment, and 8-2A-06(b) allows withdrawal only if the landlord determines it is 'necessary to fulfill a substantial, legitimate, and nondiscriminatory interest'.

What is the penalty for violating the Maryland Fair Chance Housing Act?

Chapter 752 provides that 'a person who violates this subtitle is subject to a civil penalty not exceeding $500 for each violation'. The Department of Legislative Services fiscal and policy note on the enrolled bill describes the same up-to-$500-per-violation penalty.

Can a Maryland landlord require a drug test from a rental applicant?

No, where the subtitle applies. Real Property 8-2A-04(a) prohibits a covered landlord from requiring a prospective tenant to submit to a drug or alcohol test, and from requesting or requiring consent to release information about the applicant from a substance-use-disorder prevention and treatment program.

What is the Maryland rent-reporting fee cap that started on October 1, 2026?

Under Real Property 8-208.4, added by Chapters 773 and 772 (SB 335 and HB 315), a landlord that owns six or more Maryland rental units must offer positive rent reporting and may charge 'a fee not to exceed the lesser of the actual cost to the landlord to provide the service or $10 per month'. The fee is not rent and may not be credited against rent.

Do Maryland landlords have to offer rent reporting on leases signed before October 1, 2026?

Yes, on a delayed schedule. Real Property 8-208.4(d)(2)(i) requires the offer on pre-October 1, 2026 leases to be made no later than January 1, 2027, and at least once annually thereafter, using one of the three delivery methods the statute specifies.