How much notice does a landlord have to give to raise rent in Maryland?

It depends on your tenancy. Section 8-209 requires 90 days for a lease longer than one month, 60 days for a month-to-month tenancy, and for weekly or shorter tenancies 7 days with a written lease or 21 days without one. Most guides report Maryland as a flat 60-day state, which is only the month-to-month tier and the wrong figure for anyone on a 12-month lease. Counties may require more.

Is there a cap on rent increases in Maryland?

Not at state level. Montgomery County caps increases under its Rent Stabilization law at CPI-U plus 3%, limited to 6% overall: 5.7% for July 2025 to June 2026 and 5.2% for July 2026 to June 2027, reaching units constructed in 2002 or earlier. Prince George's County and Takoma Park run their own programmes. Baltimore City has no cap, so the state notice tiers are the whole answer there.

What must a Montgomery County rent increase notice contain?

County Code section 29-54 requires the current rent, the proposed new rent, the percentage increase, the effective date, the applicable guideline, and a statement that you may ask the Department to review an increase you consider excessive. Delivery is also defined: the notice is not delivered unless it was mailed through the Postal Service to your unit or a signed receipt was obtained, so leaving it at the door does not start the 90 days.

Can my landlord raise the rent twice in a year in Maryland?

At state level there is no limit on frequency, only on notice. In Montgomery County there is: section 29-54 permits no more than one rent increase in any 12-month period, and fees are subject to the same restriction with the same 90-day notice. If you are outside a county programme and the rent has moved twice, the question becomes whether each increase carried its full statutory notice.

Maryland Rent Increase Notice: 90, 60, 21 or 7 Days

Maryland requires 90 days’ written notice before a rent increase if your lease runs longer than one month, and 60 days if you are month-to-month. For a weekly tenancy it is 7 days with a written lease or 21 without.

Almost every guide reports Maryland as a flat 60-day state. That is only the month-to-month tier — so if you are on a 12-month lease, which most Maryland renters are, the figure everyone quotes is the wrong one for you.

The tier that gets left out

Md. Code Real Prop. § 8-209 sets the notice by the length of the tenancy, not by a single figure:

90 days — a lease longer than one month;
60 days — a month-to-month tenancy;
7 days — weekly or shorter, with a written lease;
21 days — weekly or shorter, without one.

The statute sets no percentage limit and no cap on frequency. It also expressly preserves stronger local protection, which is why the county you live in matters more in Maryland than in most states.

Montgomery County: 90 days, and the notice must say certain things

Montgomery County runs a Rent Stabilization programme, and County Code § 29-54 is more prescriptive than the state statute. A landlord cannot raise rent until 90 days after written notice, for every County-licensed rental, and may not impose more than one increase in any 12 months. Fees follow the same rule.

The notice itself has to contain the current rent, the proposed new rent, the percentage increase, the effective date, the applicable guideline, and a statement that you may ask the Department to review an increase you believe is excessive. If that last item is missing, something required is missing.

Delivery is defined too: the notice is not delivered unless it was mailed through the Postal Service to your unit or a signed receipt was obtained. Handing it over without a receipt, or leaving it at the door, does not start the 90 days.

The allowance is set each year as CPI-U plus 3%, capped at 6%. It was 5.7% for July 2025 to June 2026 and 5.2% for July 2026 to June 2027. The cap reaches units constructed in 2002 or earlier.

Elsewhere in Maryland

Prince George’s County and Takoma Park run their own programmes. Baltimore City does not cap increases at all, so the state tiers above are the whole answer there. Across the state, § 8-208.1 separately bars a retaliatory increase.

When this needs a lawyer

Get advice if you are in Montgomery County and the increase exceeds the published allowance, if the increase followed a complaint or repair request, or if you were served a notice ending your tenancy rather than raising the rent. Maryland Legal Aid covers tenant matters statewide without charge.

Sources

Md. Code Real Prop. § 8-209 for the notice tiers and for the preservation of stronger local rules, and § 8-208.1 for retaliation. Montgomery County Code § 29-54 (rent adjustments and notice requirements) and § 29-53 (guideline); the code text was read. County allowance percentages come from Montgomery County DHCA and the county register. Check the DHCA rent stabilization page for the live figure before relying on a year number. Verified November 2026. This is general information, not legal advice about your tenancy.

Maryland is one of nine jurisdictions with a statute written about rent increases rather than one borrowed from the law on ending a tenancy — how all 51 compare. New York tiers its notice the same way, by the length of the tenancy, and the District next door caps the amount districtwide where Maryland leaves it to counties. For the deposit, see the Maryland deposit rule.

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