Bill > SB462

This bill allows counties in Maryland to enact local laws or ordinances that prevent landlords of residential properties from refusing to renew a lease or terminating a tenancy where a tenant remains in possession after the lease ends (a "holdover tenancy") without a valid reason, referred to as "good cause." These local laws must specify what constitutes "good cause," which includes tenant actions like substantial lease violations, causing significant damage, engaging in illegal activity, or habitually failing to pay rent, as well as landlord reasons such as needing the property for personal use by specified family members, undertaking major renovations that require the unit to be vacant, or removing the unit from the rental market for at least a year. The bill also outlines requirements for landlords, such as providing specific disclosures about property ownership if they claim their property is not subject to local good cause rules, and mandates that any local law adopted must apply uniformly across the county and cannot conflict with existing state notice requirements for lease termination. This legislation aims to provide tenants with greater stability by limiting arbitrary evictions and non-renewals, but it applies only to landlords owning six or more residential rental units in the state and excludes owner-occupied units.