A Maryland rental application tells you who will live in your rental, where they have lived and how they will pay the rent. When every applicant answers the same questions, you can compare renters fairly and show that you did.
This guide covers what to ask, how to pre-screen leads, the federal and Maryland laws that apply, application fees, assistance animals, and how to approve or deny an applicant.
What should a Maryland rental application ask?
An application collects personal and financial details, so ask only what you need to apply your written rental criteria. Your Maryland rental application should ask for:
- Applicant and co-signer names, email, phone and date of birth,
- A Social Security number, entered securely,
- The desired move-in date and everyone who will live in the home,
- The current address and current landlord’s contact details,
- Employer, job title and monthly income,
- Any housing voucher or rental assistance,
- Pets, assistance animals, vehicles and smoking, and
- Past evictions and consent to screening.
The Rentari application covers all of this in six short sections. Renters can upload a pay stub, photo ID, bank statement or reference letter, and you choose which background questions to ask, with up to four of your own.
See it first: open the whole application before you send it.
Pre-screen your leads
Not every lead fits your rental. A short pre-screener shows who meets your basic criteria before anyone spends time or money on a full application.
Send the Rentari pre-screener from Leads. Your Maryland pre-screener asks every lead for:
- Monthly household income,
- Desired move-in date,
- How many people would live there,
- Pets, and what kind,
- Smoking, and
- A self-reported credit band.
When a lead’s answers fit, invite them to apply. Remember: pre-screener answers are what the renter tells you, so verify them with the application and screening.
Federal application laws
Federal law sets the baseline for every screening decision in Maryland. These five laws shape how you screen applicants:
Fair Housing Act (FHA): You may not treat applicants differently because of these seven protected characteristics:
- Race,
- Color,
- National origin,
- Religion,
- Sex,
- Familial status, or
- Disability
It also bars ads that show a preference and different rental terms for different applicants (42 U.S.C. § 3604).
Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA): Bars credit discrimination, including because income comes from public assistance. Courts differ on whether a lease counts as credit, so count assistance income the same way as wages (15 U.S.C. § 1691).
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): Covers places open to the public, such as a leasing office. Disability rules for the rental home itself come from the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. § 12182).
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA): Covers credit, criminal and eviction reports. You need the renter’s consent before screening. Rentari collects it before our screening partner, RentButter, runs the checks (15 U.S.C. § 1681b).
Civil Rights Act of 1866: Bars race discrimination when renting any property, including homes the Fair Housing Act exempts, such as some small owner-occupied buildings (42 U.S.C. § 1982).
Criminal history: HUD warns that blanket bans on applicants with any criminal record can be discriminatory, and an arrest alone does not show that a person did anything.
Further reading: HUD fair housing rights and obligations and FTC guidance for landlords.
Maryland application laws
Beyond federal law, Maryland has its own rules on application fees and fair housing. Check both before you send an invite.
Maryland Law
Maryland application and screening fees
The rule: Maryland does not set a maximum application fee. If you charge fees other than a security deposit that total more than $25, you may keep only what you actually spent on a credit check or other application expenses and must return the rest within 15 days after the tenant moves in or after either side says in writing that no tenancy will happen; otherwise you can owe twice the fees. Since October 1, 2026, a landlord that owns or manages five or more Maryland rental units must also follow the state's limits on criminal history screening, and every landlord must put the pet policy in the rental application (Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-213; Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-2A-05; Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-210(c)).
This refund rule does not apply to a landlord who offers four or fewer units on one parcel or at one location, or to seasonal or condominium rentals (Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-213(c)).
The application must state the applicant's liability for these fees and the refund rules (Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-213(a)).
You must tell applicants whether you accept reusable tenant screening reports. If you accept them and an applicant gives you one, you may not charge an application fee or a fee to access the report (Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-218(c), (d)).
Maryland's fair housing law lists source of income among the protected classes (Md. Code, State Gov't § 20-705).
The criminal history screening rules apply to a landlord that owns or manages five or more residential rental units in Maryland, counting units held through other entities, and do not apply to owner-occupied units (Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-2A-02).
Before accepting an application fee, you must tell the applicant in writing how a criminal history check is used, that listed convictions are considered only after a conditional offer, and that the applicant may show inaccuracies, rehabilitation or other mitigating factors. You may not require a drug or alcohol test (Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-2A-04).
Before a conditional offer, you may not ask about criminal history in the application or otherwise, except about the specific convictions and sex offender registration the statute lists (Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-2A-05(a)).
After a conditional offer, you may withdraw it based on a criminal history check only for a felony conviction in any state or federal court within the 5 years before the application or an undisclosed listed conviction, only when necessary to fulfill a substantial, legitimate and nondiscriminatory interest, and with written notice giving the specific reason and the right to ask for a reassessment (Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-2A-06(a)-(c)).
Each violation of the criminal history screening rules carries a civil penalty of up to $500 (Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-2A-10).
Every rental application form must include a written copy or summary of the property's pet policy, linked on the property's website if there is one, stating any breed and weight limits, pet fees and deposits, limits on the number of pets and any other pet rules (Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-210(c)).
A reusable report under Maryland law is prepared by a consumer reporting agency within the previous 30 days at the applicant's request and expense, then made directly available to the landlord without charge. Required contents include credit, employment and income verification, address and rental history, plus seven-year criminal and eviction checks for prior-residence jurisdictions. That describes this report; it does not create a universal seven-year permission to use records. Apply the separate screening restrictions described above (Md. Code, Real Prop. 8-218(a), (b)).
If you accept a reusable report, you may request certification that the applicant's name, address, bankruptcy status, criminal history and eviction history have not materially changed since it was generated. Before the lease is signed, the statute also permits rejection if the applicant materially altered the reusable report. Distinguish a change in circumstances from alteration of the report itself (Md. Code, Real Prop. 8-218(e), (f)).
Review a consumer report for a matching identity, duplicate entries and the actual outcome of any case you may lawfully consider; a filing alone does not show the result. If the report contributes to a denial or less favorable rent, deposit or cosigner terms, give the required federal adverse-action notice with the reporting company’s name, address and phone number, a statement that it did not make the decision and cannot explain your reasons, and the rights to dispute inaccurate or incomplete information and request a free report from that company within sixty days of the notice. Keep that notice separate from Maryland’s conditional-offer withdrawal and reassessment requirements, and preserve the reasons and delivery records (FTC: landlord consumer-report guidance; FTC: tenant background checks and rights).
Local rules: Cities and counties can add their own limits. Check local rules before you set a fee.
In Rentari: You choose an optional application fee when you send the invite. It is paid to you on top of any screening fee.
Maryland Law
Fair housing in Maryland
Protected classes: Maryland law bars housing discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, disability, marital status, familial status, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, source of income or military status. Since October 1, 2026, the law also bars practices that have a discriminatory effect on a protected class, regardless of intent, unless the practice had no discriminatory intent, was necessary to a substantial, legitimate and nondiscriminatory interest, and that interest could not be met by less discriminatory means (Md. Code, State Gov't § 20-705).
Exemptions: Some exemptions apply, such as certain owner-occupied buildings and single-family homes rented without a broker or advertising, and they differ by protected class (Md. Code, State Gov't § 20-704).
Source of income: If you use financial information in screening, you may not refuse a tenant who pays with a housing voucher or other income-based subsidy because of income, a credit score or lack of one, or confirmed adverse credit history from a period without the subsidy, though you may check income against the tenant's share of the rent (Md. Code, State Gov't § 20-705.1).
Pets, ESAs and service animals
Ask about animals on every application, but treat an assistance animal differently from a pet. Here is what to keep in mind:
Pet information: The Rentari application asks whether an animal will live at the property and lets the renter mark an assistance animal.
Not a pet: A service animal or emotional support animal is not a pet. Under federal fair housing law you generally can’t:
- Charge a pet fee, pet deposit or pet rent for one, or
- Apply your pet breed, size or weight limits to it.
Damage: The renter stays responsible for any damage the animal causes.
In Rentari: An assistance animal is routed as a fair housing request and is never charged a pet fee.
Approvals and denials
Apply the same written criteria to every applicant, and handle each decision the same way.
Approval: Choose Accept complete household in the household decision. Your lease draft is ready to review. Before move-in, check Maryland’s deposit rules:
Lawful reasons to deny: Deny only for reasons in your written criteria that you apply to every applicant, such as income below your standard, credit history, rental history including unpaid rent or eviction judgments, or incomplete or false information. Use criminal history only where Maryland and local law allow it, and weigh the offense and how long ago it happened.
Adverse action notice: If a screening report contributes to a denial, or to terms such as a co-signer, a higher deposit or higher rent, federal law requires a notice that:
- Names the reporting company and how to reach it,
- Says that company did not make the decision,
- Explains the renter’s right to a free copy of the report within 60 days, and
- Explains the right to dispute the report.
In Rentari: Choose Deny selected applicants and send individual notices in the household decision to send each notice. You make the decision.
Record keeping: Federal law sets no retention period for a private landlord’s applications. A fair housing lawsuit can be filed up to two years after a decision, so keep each application, your written criteria and the decision at least that long (42 U.S.C. § 3613(a)(1)(A)).
Screening reports: When you no longer need a screening report, destroy it securely. The FTC Disposal Rule covers consumer reports (16 C.F.R. Part 682).
Maryland rental application questions
Is there a limit on application fees in Maryland?
No cap, but if your fees other than a deposit exceed $25, you must refund what you did not actually spend on screening within 15 days, unless you offer four or fewer units at one location. If you own or manage five or more Maryland units, you must also give the written criminal history screening notice before accepting any application fee (Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-213; Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-2A-04(b)).
Who pays for screening on Rentari?
In most states the renter pays the screening fee at the end of the application and nothing is charged to you. Where a state requires the landlord to pay, the invite tells you. The fee is shown before payment.
Can I ask about criminal history?
You choose whether the application asks about criminal convictions; it is off by default. Check Maryland and local rules first, and avoid blanket bans.