Maryland Mobile Home Park Rent Control: 2026 Guide

Is mobile home lot rent controlled in Maryland?

Short answer: there is no statewide cap. Maryland does not set a statewide percentage limit on how much you can raise mobile-home lot rent. Your rent increases are governed mainly by the state Mobile Home Parks Act (Real Property Title 8A), which controls timing and lease terms — not the dollar amount.

The one numeric limit written into state law is triggered only when a community is sold: a buyer who files the required continued-use affidavit cannot raise lot rent more than 10% per year for the first three years (Real Prop. § 8A-1803).

A few jurisdictions — Montgomery County, Takoma Park, and Prince George's County — have local rent stabilization. Maryland does not broadly preempt these ordinances, but they are written for residential rental dwelling units and do not expressly reach mobile-home-park lot rent. If your park sits in one of those three places, confirm applicability locally before you raise rent.

No statewide cap, but Title 8A controls how you raise rent

Maryland has no statewide rent-control law, so there is no fixed percentage ceiling on an ordinary lot-rent increase. What the state does regulate is process. Under Real Prop. § 8A-202 you must offer year-round residents a written rental agreement of at least one year, and that renewal must carry the same terms you offer on a month-to-month basis.

When you offer a renewal with a higher rent, § 8A-202(i) requires written notice of the increase at least 60 days before the current agreement expires. Build that 60-day lead time into your renewal calendar.

One clarification on a common misconception: Title 8A does not contain an explicit 'only once a year' rent-increase rule and no percentage cap. In practice, because you must offer annual leases and set rent at renewal, increases naturally land on a yearly cycle — but that is a structural result, not a stated statutory ceiling.

Local rent stabilization — and whether it touches your lot rent

Three Maryland jurisdictions cap rent. Takoma Park has had rent stabilization since 1981 and ties its yearly allowance to CPI (a 2.4% maximum for July 1, 2025-June 30, 2026). Montgomery County adopted rent stabilization in Bill 15-23 (effective 2024), limiting annual increases to the lesser of CPI-U + 3% or 6% (currently 5.7% for the year starting July 1, 2025) and requiring 90 days' notice of any increase. Prince George's County passed its Permanent Rent Stabilization and Protection Act in 2024 with a similar ceiling (roughly the lesser of CPI-U + 3% or 6%, and lower figures for senior housing).

Here is the key point for park operators: each of these laws applies to residential 'rental units' or 'rental facilities' — dwelling units that a landlord owns, licenses, and rents out as a home. None of them name mobile-home-park lot rent (where the resident owns the home and rents only the pad), and none of their exemption lists even mention mobile or manufactured homes.

Because the ordinances neither clearly include nor clearly exempt lot rent, do not assume either way. If your park is in Montgomery County, Takoma Park, or Prince George's County, confirm with the local housing office and your attorney whether the cap applies to your lot rent before you issue an increase.

The one state cap that can bind you: buying a park

If you acquire a manufactured housing community, a real numeric limit kicks in. Under Real Prop. §§ 8A-1801-1806, when a community owner accepts an offer to sell, the purchaser must file a recorded affidavit agreeing to keep the land in use as a manufactured housing community for five years and to hold lot-rent increases to no more than 10% per year for the first three years after closing.

These teeth are enforceable: a purchaser who files the affidavit and then closes the community within five years, or raises a lot's rent by more than 10% per year in the first three years, is liable to the homeowners organization for $10,000 (§ 8A-1806).

There is also a resident opportunity-to-purchase framework attached to these sale rules, so factor both the rent cap and the notice/affidavit obligations into any acquisition underwriting.

Rent-increase rules at a glance in Maryland

• Statewide rent cap
  None. Maryland sets no statewide percentage limit on lot-rent increases.
• Notice of increase
  At least 60 days before the current lease expires when you offer a renewal with higher rent (Real Prop. § 8A-202(i)).
• Lease term
  You must offer year-round residents a written agreement of at least one year (§ 8A-202), so rent is set at the annual renewal.
• Frequency
  No express statutory 'once a year' cap, but the annual-lease structure means rent is normally adjusted only at each yearly renewal.
• Post-sale cap
  If you buy a community and file the continued-use affidavit, lot rent cannot rise more than 10% per year for the first 3 years (§ 8A-1803).
• Local rent stabilization
  Montgomery County (lesser of CPI-U + 3% or 6%), Takoma Park (CPI-based), and Prince George's County cap increases — but on residential rental units, not expressly on MHP lots. Confirm locally.

Operator best practices in Maryland

• Send a compliant 60-day notice
  Deliver written notice of any renewal rent increase at least 60 days before the lease expires and keep proof of delivery (§ 8A-202).
• Offer the required one-year lease
  Give year-round residents a written agreement of at least one year, on the same terms as your month-to-month offer (§ 8A-202).
• Mind the post-sale 10% cap
  If you acquired the park under a continued-use affidavit, keep annual lot-rent increases at or under 10% for three years — overages cost $10,000 to the homeowners organization (§§ 8A-1803, 8A-1806).
• Check your county and city
  For parks in Montgomery County, Takoma Park, or Prince George's County, confirm with the local housing office whether rent stabilization reaches lot rent before setting an increase.
• Don't read 'no cap' as 'no rules'
  Even without a percentage ceiling, Title 8A governs your notices, disclosures, lease offers, and evictions — follow it precisely.
• Build a relationship with a Maryland MHP attorney
  Manufactured-housing law and local ordinances change; have a Maryland mobile-home-park attorney review your leases, rent-increase notices, and any acquisition.