Article I. In General.

*Editor's note—Chapters 29 and 51 are cited in Paul v. Blackburn Limited Partnership, 211 Md. App. 52, 63 A.3d 1107 (2013), affirmed, 438 Md. 100, 90 A.3d 464 (2014). The Court discussed Section 51-15 in that Section 51-15(b)(1) … apply only to a pool for which the building permit application is submitted after the effective date of this law [July 13, 1990]….

Chapter 29 is cited in Joseph v. Bozzuto Management Company, 173 Md. App. 305, 918 A.2d 1230 (2007). The general authority of the County Council to enact a landlord tenant law, even if it is in derogation of the common law was upheld in County Council for Montgomery County v. Investors Funding Corp., 270 Md. 403, 312 A.2d 225 (1973). Chapter 29 is cited in Dumont Oaks Community Ass’n. v. Montgomery County, 333 Md. 202, 634 A.2d 459 (1993) and is interpreted in Westchester West No. 2 Limited Partnership v. Montgomery County, 276 Md. 448, 348 A.2d 856 (1975).

See County Attorney Opinion dated 10/12/11 regarding the jurisdiction of the Commission over a landlord- tenant dispute.

2000 L.M.C., ch. 23, § 4, states: Transition. Until superseded, an Executive Regulation issued under Chapter 29 before this Act took effect [ April 1, 2001] remains in effect except when the regulation is clearly inconsistent with Chapter 29 as amended by this Act.

Cross references—Consumer protection, ch. 11; Rental assistance, ch. 41A; Administrative procedures, ch. 2A.

Article I. In General.

Sec. 29-1. Definitions.

In this Chapter, the following words and phrases have the following meanings:

Accessory apartment or accessory dwelling unit: A residential unit that is:

(a) Either:

(1) In or added to an existing one-family dwelling, or

(2) In a separate accessory structure on the same lot as an existing one-family dwelling; and

(b) For use as a complete, independent living facility with provision within the accessory dwelling unit for cooking, eating, sanitation, and sleeping.

Affected tenant: Any tenant whose health, safety and welfare is, or reasonably may be, impaired by a defective tenancy.

Apartment complex: A set of related buildings that have the same landlord and that all contain multifamily rental dwelling units.

Apartment hotel: Any building or portion of a building designated for or containing both guest rooms and dwelling units.

Commission: The Commission on Landlord-Tenant Affairs.

Common ownership community:

(a) a development subject to a declaration enforced by a homeowners' association, as those terms are used in State law;

(b) a condominium, as that term is used in State law; and

Common ownership community fees means fees charged by the entity authorized to impose a fee on the owner or occupant of a housing unit in a common ownership community for services or the benefit of common areas in the community.

County laws: Unless otherwise indicated, Chapter 27, Article II of Chapter 8, Chapter 22, Chapter 26 and Chapter 59 and all other housing-related laws and regulations.

Defective tenancy: Any condition in rental housing that violates a term of the lease, this Chapter, or any other law or regulation.

Department: The Department of Housing and Community Affairs.

Director: The Director of the Department of Housing and Community Affairs or the Director's designee.

Dwelling unit: That portion of a building that is designated, intended, or arranged for use or occupancy as a residence by one or more persons. Dwelling unit includes:

(a) personal property, including a mobile home as defined in Section 29-66, located in the County if the personal property is offered for lease as a residence;

(b) real property on which the personal property is situated (or will be situated) and that is necessary for the convenient use of the personal property; and

(c) property owned by the landlord that is available for use by the tenant in connection with the tenant's occupancy for which the tenant must pay rent.

Dwelling unit does not include a rented room in a single family dwelling unit.

Dwelling unit, multifamily:

(a) a dwelling unit that shares a common entrance from the outside with other dwelling units in the same building;

(b) a dwelling unit in a structure where units are arranged above or below, or next to, another dwelling unit;

(d) an individual living unit.

Dwelling unit, single-family: A dwelling unit that has at least one direct entrance from the outside for the exclusive use of its occupants. A single family dwelling unit may be detached from other dwelling units or share a side or rear wall with another dwelling unit.

Governing body of a common ownership community: The council of unit owners, board of directors, or any other body authorized by an association document to adopt binding rules or regulations.

Individual living unit: A private living accommodation, located in a personal living quarters building, that a tenant must agree to occupy for longer than 30 days, that may contain complete sanitation facilities and equipment for incidental food preparation, such as small portable kitchen appliances, but must not contain complete cooking facilities, such as a stove, oven, or similar device.

Landlord: The owner, the owner's agent, lessor, or sublessor of the dwelling unit authorized to exercise any aspect of the management of the premises, except persons engaged solely in custodial and maintenance functions. In a condominium housing structure, the owner of any dwelling unit that is designated, intended, or arranged for use or occupancy as a residence by one or more persons and for which the owner receives consideration, and the owner's agent, is a landlord. In a cooperative housing structure, any person having an ownership interest in the legal entity that holds title to the cooperative housing structure and enjoys exclusive use of a dwelling unit and for which the party who has an ownership interest in the legal entity receives consideration for leasing the dwelling unit is a landlord.

Lease: Any written agreement that establishes or modifies the terms, conditions, rules, regulations or any other provisions concerning the use and occupancy of a dwelling unit.

Personal living quarters building: Any building or portion of a building that:

(a) contains at least 6 individual living units,

(b) has cooking facilities that the residents may share, and

Rental housing: Any structure, or combination of related structures and appurtenances, including a personal living quarters building and a mobile home park as defined in Section 29-66(1), in which a landlord provides to a tenant for consideration one or more dwelling units. Rental housing does not include:

(a) any transient housing, such as a guest room in an apartment hotel, boarding house, tourist home, inn, motel, hotel, school dormitory, hospital, or medical facility; or

(b) any housing operated for religious or eleemosynary purposes.

Security deposit: Any payment of money, including the payment of the last month's rent before it is due, given to a landlord to offset nonpayment of rent or damage to the leased premises.

Tenant: Any person who occupies a dwelling unit for living or dwelling purposes with the landlord's consent. (1972 L.M.C., ch. 27, § 1; 1973 L.M.C., ch. 14, § 1; 1974 L.M.C., ch. 60, § 1; 1978 L.M.C., ch. 11, § 2; 1980 L.M.C., ch. 31, § 1; 1982 L.M.C., ch. 48, § 1; 1983 L.M.C., ch. 24, § 1; 1984 L.M.C., ch. 23, § 1; 1984 L.M.C., ch. 30, § 2; 1985 L.M.C., ch. 40, § 1; 1987 L.M.C., ch. 23, § 2; 1992 L.M.C., ch. 24, § 1; 1995 L.M.C., ch. 17, § 1; 1996 L.M.C., ch. 13, § 1; 1997 L.M.C., ch. 1, § 1; 2000 L.M.C., ch. 32, § 1; 2015 L.M.C., ch. 10, § 1; 2019 L.M.C., ch. 18, §1; 2021 L.M.C., ch. 26, § 1.)

Editor's note—1983 L.M.C., ch. 24, § 13, provides in part as follows: "The amendments to chapter 29 approved by this act shall be repealed and of no force or effect on or after March 8, 1985." This sentence was deleted by 1985 L.M.C., ch. 40, § 1, thus giving the law permanent status.

Sec. 29-2. Legislative findings.

The County Council finds that there is often unequal bargaining power between landlords and tenants; that the common law principles under which leases are interpreted as grants of right of possession rather than mutual and dependent covenants evolved in an agricultural setting and are ill-suited to the modern residential setting of this urban county; that, in order to facilitate fair and equitable arrangements, foster the development of housing that will meet the minimum standards of the present day and promote the health, safety and welfare of the people, it is necessary and appropriate that the County appoint a commission and assign responsibilities to the Department to determine certain minimum rights and remedies, obligations and prohibitions, for landlords and tenants of certain kinds of residential property. (1972 L.M.C., ch. 27, § 1; 1978 L.M.C., ch. 11, § 2; 1980 L.M.C., ch. 31, § 1; 1996 L.M.C., ch. 13, § 1; 2000 L.M.C., ch. 32, § 1.)

Editor’s note—Section 29-2 is quoted in Joseph v. Bozzuto Management Company, 173 Md. App. 305, 918 A.2d 1230 (2007).

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