In Maryland, landlords are required to follow specific laws and regulations when screening tenants and reviewing rental applications. These laws are designed to protect both landlords and tenants, and ensure the rental process is fair and transparent. This is informational only; not legal advice.

• Fair Housing Act: Federal law prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, or disability. (42 U.S.C. §§ 3601-3619, 3631)
• Maryland Fair Housing Law: State law extends the protections listed under the Fair Housing Act to include additional categories such as marital status, sexual orientation, and gender identity.
• Maryland Security Deposit Law: State law governs the collection and return of security deposits including the maximum amount landlords can collect and the timeline for returning a deposit. (Md. Code Ann., Real Prop. §§ 8-203 to 8-215) A Maryland landlord may ask for up to two months’ rent as a security deposit.
• Maryland Landlord and Tenant Law: This state law governs rental agreements and provides guidelines for various aspects of the landlord-tenant relationship including the application process, lease terms, and rent increases.

Maryland also has state-specific requirements regarding tenant screening and rental applications, including:

• Application fees: Landlords may charge an application fee to cover the cost of processing an application. Landlords may keep an application fee of $25 or less, and if the fee exceeds $25 they must refund any amount that was not used to process an application.
• Credit and background checks: Landlords may conduct credit and background checks on applicants but must obtain written consent from applicants and provide them with a copy of the report if requested.
• Income verification: Landlords can require proof of income from prospective tenants to ensure they can afford the rent. However, landlords cannot discriminate against tenants based on their source of income (e.g., government assistance, child support).
• Tenant selection criteria: Landlords must apply their tenant selection criteria uniformly to all applicants and cannot discriminate based on protected characteristics under state and federal law.
• Denial of rental application: If a landlord denies a rental application based on information obtained during the screening process, they must provide the tenant with an adverse action notice that explains the reason for the denial and provides information about how the tenant can dispute the decision.
• Use of criminal history in tenant screening: Under the state's Fair Criminal Record Screening Standards Act, landlords cannot ask about an applicant's criminal history on a rental application. However, they can conduct a criminal background check later in the process and use that information to make a decision.
• Montgomery County: In Montgomery County, landlords and agents may not access applicant criminal history until they have conditionally accepted an applicant.