Wicomico County, MD Rental Property Rules: Repairs & Habitability (2026)

Wicomico County has no separate landlord-tenant habitability statute; instead the county-wide Housing Standards code, Chapter 160, sets the minimum condition every dwelling unit must meet, and it applies equally to owner-occupied homes and rental housing across the unincorporated county. Article VI opens with Section 160-36's baseline: every foundation, roof, exterior wall, door, skylight and window must be weathertight and kept in sound condition and good repair, floors and interior walls and ceilings must be sound, and yards must be graded and free of stagnant water, rubbish and garbage.

Article IX adds the heating floor at Section 160-50: during the part of the year when heat is needed, every dwelling unit and guest room must have a heating system capable of holding a room temperature of 65 degrees F, measured three feet above the floor and three feet from an exterior wall, in every habitable room, bathroom and toilet room. Article XII's plumbing rules complete the floor: Section 160-83 requires a private, nonhabitable bathroom equipped with a flush toilet in good working condition, connected to a water system that supplies adequate running water under pressure and to a sewer system meeting state Health Department rules.

Any renter who finds a unit missing these basics can report it to the Housing Official, who can order repairs, require the unit be vacated if conditions are hazardous, or, for extreme disrepair, order the structure demolished under the Article VII dangerous-building process; the Chapter 160 penalty in Section 160-26 backs enforcement with a civil-infraction fine of up to $1,000 per violation.