Bowie, MD Rental Property Rules: Rental Registration (2026)

City Code § 5-9A makes it unlawful for any person to let a dwelling unit for compensation of any kind, including government rental-assistance payments, without first holding a rental license or a temporary certificate issued under this section. Every legal owner of record must file a written application with the City on the City's designated form and pay a nonrefundable rental license fee, with the fee amount set by Council resolution or ordinance rather than fixed in the code text itself. Once the City Manager receives a completed application, he issues a nontransferable temporary certificate that lets the applicant operate while the unit is inspected; the certificate expires 60 days after issuance, or on the date an approved extension runs out.

It is the owner's duty, not the City's, to get the required inspection scheduled within 30 days of the temporary certificate and to complete any needed repairs and reinspection within 30 days after that, though the City Manager may extend those windows for good cause. A rental license issued under § 5-9 is good for one year and must be renewed at least 60 days before it expires; a late renewal draws a 10% penalty per month, or part of a month, past the due date.

The City Manager can revoke or deny a license if the owner fails to fix property-code violations within 10 days of notice, and a licensed owner must produce the license or temporary certificate whenever a tenant or prospective tenant asks to see it.