Frederick, MD Rental Property Rules: Rent Control (2026)
Rent control rules in Frederick, MD, also known as rent stabilization or rent cap ordinances, limit annual rent increases and protect tenants from displacement.
Key Facts
- General rent control
- None; market-rate units are unregulated
- MPDU control period
- 40 years from initial sale covenant
- Rent cap authority
- Set by Board of Aldermen regulation
- Priority marketing
- 60 days to eligible persons first
- Waiver authority
- Director may waive to match state/federal rules
Summary
Frederick has no general rent control: market-rate apartments are unregulated. The only local rent cap sits in City Code Section 19-15, which limits rent on Moderately Priced Dwelling Units built under the city's affordable-housing program to a rate the Board of Aldermen sets by regulation during each unit's control period.
Sec. 19-15. - Rent Controls. MPDUs built or offered for rent under this chapter shall not be rented during the control period at a rent greater than that established by regulations adopted by the Board of Aldermen. Whenever any MPDU other than those built, sold or rented under any Federal, State or local program offered by a housing agency is offered for rent during the control period, it must be offered exclusively for sixty (60) days to eligible persons, as determined by the Department, for use as the eligible person's own residence.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Land Management Code: Supplement 13 | Code of Ordinances: Supplement 112).
Full Breakdown
The MPDU program created by Chapter 19 requires developers of qualifying residential projects to set aside a share of units as Moderately Priced Dwelling Units, and Section 19-15 controls what those specific units may rent for while they remain within the program's control period, which Section 19-13(a)(1) fixes at forty years from the covenant recorded before the unit's initial sale. Any MPDU rental (other than units built, sold, or rented through a separate federal, state, or local housing-agency program) must first be offered exclusively for sixty days to eligible persons on the Department's waiting list who intend to use it as their own residence, before it can go to the general rental market.
The Director may waive the rent restriction under Section 19-17 only if it conflicts with federal or state housing-program regulations and would otherwise block an eligible household from renting or buying an MPDU. Outside the MPDU program, Frederick's code contains no chapter capping rent increases or regulating rent for privately owned market-rate rental housing; property owners set market rents freely subject only to state landlord-tenant law and lease terms. Enforcement of the MPDU rent limits runs through the Building Department, which may deny, suspend, or revoke building permits and certificates of use and occupancy under Section 19-19 for noncompliance, and violations can also be pursued in equity to force compliance or an eligible-buyer sale.
Violations & Fines
Renting an MPDU above the Board-set control-period rate, or skipping the required 60-day priority marketing to eligible persons, violates Section 19-15. The city can deny, suspend, or revoke building permits and certificates of use and occupancy under Section 19-19, and may seek an injunction or court order forcing an owner to sell or re-rent the unit to an eligible household.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Frederick have rent control?
How is the MPDU rent limit set?
Can an MPDU rent restriction ever be waived?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Frederick
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