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<baltimore-city-law heading="Subtitle 7 – Residential Lease Requirements">
  <section prefix="§" num="7-1" heading="In general.">
    <text>After August 1, 1981, any landlord who rents dwelling units by means of written leases shall comply with the following requirements.</text>
    <annotation type="Prior Codifications">City Code, 1976/83, art. 13, §56(intro)</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 81-290</annotation>
    <annotation type="History" />
  </section>
  <section prefix="§" num="7-2" heading="Copy of lease to tenant.">
    <text>A copy of the lease, signed by tenant and landlord, shall be given to tenant at the time of signing of the lease.</text>
    <annotation type="Prior Codifications">City Code, 1976/83, art. 13, §56(a)</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 81-290</annotation>
    <annotation type="History" />
  </section>
  <section prefix="§" num="7-3" heading="Information required.">
    <para num="(a)" heading="In general.">
      <para num="(1)">Each residential lease must contain the following information:<para num="(i)">the name, residence address, and residence telephone number or the name, business address, and business telephone number of the owner of the property, or</para>
        <para num="(ii)">the name, residence address, and residence telephone number or the name, business address, and business telephone number of an agent of the owner who is authorized to receive court process on behalf of the owner in connection with the property.</para>
      </para>
      <para num="(2)">Any owner who is not customarily present in an office in the metropolitan Baltimore area must include in the lease the information required above for an agent authorized to receive court process on behalf of the owner.</para>
    </para>
    <para num="(a-1)" heading="Payment for water and wastewater services.">
      <para num="(1)">Any property owner or managing operator who requires that a tenant pay the costs of water or wastewater services, whether directly to the Department of Public Works or as reimbursement to the owner or managing operator, shall include that requirement in an express provision of a written lease.</para>
      <para num="(2)">The lease shall include a provision that the landlord makes the tenant a designee under Maryland’s Public Information Act to request and to receive copies of any account records for the water or wastewater account at issue.</para>
      <para num="(3)">Whenever a landlord requires the tenant to reimburse the landlord for allocated costs of water or wastewater service, the lease required by this subsection shall also:<para num="(i)">describe the calculation method used by the owner or owner’s agent to allocate the cost of water and wastewater services to the tenant; and</para>
        <para num="(ii)">specify the average monthly allocated costs of water and wastewater services for the leased dwelling unit or rooming unit in the 12 months preceding execution of the lease or renewal of the lease.</para>
      </para>
    </para>
    <para num="(a-2)" heading="Late fees.">
      <para num="(1)" heading="“Government benefit” defined.">In this subsection, “government benefit” means:<para num="(i)">temporary cash assistance or other assistance described in Title 5 of the State Human Services Article;</para>
        <para num="(ii)">supplemental security income;</para>
        <para num="(iii)">social security disability income;</para>
        <para num="(iv)">unemployment insurance benefits;</para>
        <para num="(v)">Veteran’s Administration benefits;</para>
        <para num="(vi)">social security benefits; or</para>
        <para num="(vii)">assistance from any other similar federal, state, or City government benefits program.</para>
      </para>
      <para num="(2)" heading="Scope of subsection.">This subsection does not apply to leases for public housing administered by the Housing Authority of Baltimore City.</para>
      <para num="(3)" heading="In general.">A residential lease shall include a provision that the landlord may not apply late fees to the rent until the tenant is more than 10 days past due with the rent.</para>
      <para num="(4)" heading="Additional late fee provisions.">In addition, a residential lease that includes a provision permitting a landlord to apply a penalty for the late payment of rent must include a provision that prohibits a landlord from applying a penalty fee for late payment of rent until:<para num="(i)">the tenant’s payment of the rent is more than 10 days late; or</para>
        <para num="(ii)">the tenant has received the tenant’s regularly scheduled government benefit disbursement if the tenant has previously provided the landlord with written notice that shows the day of the month the government benefit is normally issued or mailed is later than the day on which the rent is due.</para>
      </para>
    </para>
    <para num="(b)" heading="Changes.">
      <para num="(1)">Within 10 days of a change in any information required by subsection (a) of this section to be contained in a lease, the property owner must notify the tenant of the change.</para>
      <para num="(2)">The notice must be sent to the tenant by first class mail.</para>
    </para>
    <para num="(c)" heading="Additional required disclosures.">
      <para num="(1)">Along with the copy of the lease required to be given to the tenant by &lt;cite data-path="|13|§7-2"&gt;§ 7-2 of this subtitle&lt;/cite&gt;, the tenant must be given a copy of a tenants rights brochure approved by the Housing Commissioner that discusses:<para num="(i)">free or reduced price legal representation available to tenants;</para>
        <para num="(ii)">pre-trial and day of trial mediation programs available to resolve landlord-tenant disputes; and</para>
        <para num="(iii)">a tenant’s right to know the amount of rent that is in arrears.</para>
      </para>
      <para num="(2)">A tenant must also be given a copy of the brochure required by paragraph (1) of this subsection:<para num="(i)">at the time that a lawsuit is commenced by the owner or landlord against the tenant;</para>
        <para num="(ii)">if the Baltimore City Sheriff’s Office is used to serve a summons and complaint by the landlord seeking eviction, including for summary ejectment, tenant holding over, or breach of lease, at the time that the summons and complaint are served on the tenant; and</para>
        <para num="(iii)">at the time that the Housing Authority of Baltimore City sends a notice to terminate a tenant’s subsidy or tenancy.</para>
      </para>
    </para>
    <annotation type="Prior Codifications">City Code, 1976/83, art. 13, §56(b)</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 81-290</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 02-475</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 13-175</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 18-137</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 19-332</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 20-336</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 20-465</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 21-014</annotation>
    <annotation type="Editor's Notes">In conjunction with its enactment of Subtitle 6A, Ordinance 20-465 also amended this § 7-3(c), subject to the same delayed effective date of April 1, 2021.</annotation>
    <annotation type="Editor's Notes">Subsection (a-2) was enacted by Ordinance 21-014 {“Late Fees for Past Due Rent ”}, with an effective date of April 30, 2021. Section 3 of Ord. 21-014, however, specifies that “this Ordinance shall only apply prospectively to new leases and shall have no retroactive effect on leases entered into prior to the effective date of this Ordinance”.</annotation>
    <annotation type="Editor's Notes">Subsection (a-1) was enacted on January 13, 2020, by Ord. 20-336 {“Water Accountability and Equity Act”).  For the effective date of this subsection, as more recently set  by Ord. 20-468 {“Water Accountability ... Act – Modifications”}, see Editor’s Note in City Code &lt;cite data-path="|24"&gt;Article 24 {“Water”}&lt;/cite&gt;, at the end of that article’s Subtitle 2 {“Bills”} – especially the quotes there from Ord. 20-468, Sections 4 and 5(b).</annotation>
    <annotation type="History" />
  </section>
  <section prefix="§" num="7-4" heading="Exemptions.">
    <text>The provisions of this subtitle do not apply to the following:</text>
    <para num="(1)">rental units in hotels, motels, inns, tourist homes and rooming and boarding houses which are rented primarily to transient guests for a period of less than 14 days, and</para>
    <para num="(2)">rental units in any hospital, convent, monastery, extended medical care facility, asylum, non-profit home for the aged, or dormitory owned and operated by an institution of higher education, and</para>
    <para num="(3)">individual rental units which a government unit, agency, or authority owns, operates, or manages, and</para>
    <para num="(4)">rental units within the premises occupied by the owner as his residence.</para>
    <annotation type="Prior Codifications">City Code, 1976/83, art. 13, §56(c)</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 81-290</annotation>
    <annotation type="History" />
  </section>
  <section prefix="§" num="7-5" heading="Responsibility for compliance.">
    <text>The owner of the property has primary responsibility for compliance with the provisions of this subtitle.</text>
    <annotation type="Prior Codifications">City Code, 1976/83, art. 13, §56(d)</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 81-290</annotation>
    <annotation type="History" />
  </section>
  <section prefix="§" num="7-6" heading="Enforcement by tenant.">
    <text>A tenant may seek relief from an appropriate court to restrain or enjoin any violation of the provisions of this subtitle.</text>
    <annotation type="Prior Codifications">City Code, 1976/83, art. 13, §56(f)</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 81-290</annotation>
    <annotation type="History" />
  </section>
  <section prefix="§" num="7-7" heading="Penalties.">
    <text>Any property owner or landlord who leases residential property under a written lease which does not conform to the provisions of this subtitle, or who fails to give a tenant a copy of the lease as provided in &lt;cite data-path="|13|§7-2"&gt;§ 7-2 of this subtitle&lt;/cite&gt; and the tenants rights brochure as provided in &lt;cite data-path="|13|§7-3|(c)"&gt;§ 7-3(c) of this subtitle&lt;/cite&gt;, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be subject to a fine of up to $100 for each violation.</text>
    <annotation type="Prior Codifications">City Code, 1976/83, art. 13, §56(e)</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 81-290</annotation>
    <annotation type="History">Ord. 18-137</annotation>
    <annotation type="History" />
  </section>
</baltimore-city-law>
