Maryland Rental Licensing and Eviction: What Landlords Must Know Before Filing

In jurisdictions with mandatory rental licensing — including Baltimore City and Baltimore County — a landlord who cannot prove license compliance at trial faces dismissal of a repossession action. This is true even if the landlord is otherwise entirely in the right. Here is what the statute requires.

The Statute: § 8-406

Maryland Real Property Code § 8-406 applies only in jurisdictions that require a license for the lawful operation of residential rental property. Where it applies, the statute imposes two requirements on a landlord filing to repossess residential property.

First, at the time of filing, the landlord must plead with supporting facts — in the form prescribed by the Judiciary — that the property is either: (1) licensed in compliance with applicable local rental licensing requirements; (2) exempt from those requirements; or (3) unlicensed for one of the specific reasons listed in § 8-406(c)(1)(iii)-(v).

Second, at trial, the landlord must prove by a preponderance of the evidence that one of those three conditions is met. Electronic proof of licensure is expressly permitted under the statute.

What Happens If You Cannot Prove Licensure?

The case is dismissed. Not continued. Not sent to a different court. Dismissed. The landlord must then cure the licensure defect and start the entire proceeding over — filing a new complaint, serving the tenant again, and waiting for a new hearing date. Meanwhile, the person remains in possession of the property.

This outcome is entirely avoidable with a few minutes of verification before filing. It is also one of the most common reasons holding-over cases filed by landlords without counsel fail at trial.

The Three Licensure Situations

§ 8-406(c)(1) identifies five ways a landlord can satisfy the licensure requirement at trial. The most common are:

• Licensed in compliance — The property has a current, valid rental license. Prove it with the license certificate or electronic verification from the licensing authority.
• Exempt — The property is exempt from licensing requirements under the applicable local ordinance. The nature of the exemption varies by jurisdiction. Owner-occupied properties with a limited number of rental units are commonly exempt in some jurisdictions.
• Unlicensed due to tenant's wrongful act — The tenant's own conduct — regardless of intent — caused the licensing authority to suspend, revoke, or refuse to grant or renew the license. This is a narrow exception and requires specific evidence.
• Unlicensed due to administrative error — An error or omission by the licensing authority itself caused the license issue. Also narrow and requires documentation.
• Multi-unit property partial licensure issue — A complex exception for multi-unit properties where only one unit has a licensing problem, the unit at issue passes inspection, and the landlord has taken all necessary steps to resolve the underlying issue. Specific conditions must all be met.

Which Jurisdictions Require Rental Licensing?

The statute is triggered only in jurisdictions that actually require rental licenses. As of 2025, the major Maryland jurisdictions with mandatory residential rental licensing requirements include Baltimore City and Baltimore County. Other Maryland counties and municipalities may have their own registration or licensing requirements — the rules vary by jurisdiction and can change. Landlords should verify the current requirements for the specific jurisdiction where the property is located before filing any repossession action.

Note that § 8-406 expressly does not apply to actions under § 8-402.1(a)(1)(i)2B (certain breach-of-lease actions involving imminent danger). All other repossession actions — including holding-over under § 8-402 — are covered where licensing requirements exist.

Practical Steps Before Filing in Baltimore City or Baltimore County

• Confirm the property's current license status through the city or county licensing portal before filing — not after receiving the complaint form
• If the license has lapsed, determine whether renewal is possible before filing, or whether a recognized exception applies
• Gather the license certificate or printout of current electronic verification to bring to the hearing
• If the property is exempt, identify and document the specific basis for the exemption under the applicable local ordinance
• Note that the court may grant one postponement if additional evidence related to licensure is needed — but counting on this is risky

How This Interacts With Wrongful Detainer (§ 14-132)

Section 8-406 applies to complaints filed under § 8-401 (failure to pay rent), § 8-402 (holding over), and § 8-402.1 (breach of lease), as well as equivalent public local law provisions. It also applies to wrongful detainer complaints filed under § 14-132 where the property is residential and the jurisdiction requires rental licensing.

Property owners pursuing wrongful detainer actions in Baltimore City or Baltimore County should therefore verify rental license compliance even though the wrongful detainer statute does not expressly require a lease — because § 8-406's licensing requirement attaches to the act of filing a repossession complaint for residential property, not to the existence of a lease.

The Bottom Line

Rental license compliance is a threshold requirement in licensing jurisdictions — not an afterthought. A property owner who files a holding-over or wrongful detainer action without verifying licensure, in a jurisdiction that requires it, risks having the case dismissed on a technicality that has nothing to do with the merits. We check licensure as a standard step before filing any repossession action in Baltimore City or Baltimore County.

The Cohen Law Firm handles wrongful detainer and tenant holding-over matters for property owners throughout Maryland. Contact us to discuss your situation.