Annapolis, MD Short-Term Rentals: Occupancy Limits (2026)

Under Annapolis City Code Title 17 (Buildings and Construction), Chapter 17.44 (Rental Unit Licenses), short-term rentals are dwelling-unit rentals to transient guests for up to 120 consecutive days in a calendar year. Section 17.44.010 requires that during a short-term tenant occupancy the owner must not allow more than two individuals per bedroom (small children excluded) and must post a notice on the back of the main entrance door stating that limit. The owner must also keep a reservation log with owner and guest information and install interconnected smoke alarms with detection on each level plus battery-operated smoke alarms in each bedroom as required by Chapter 17.40. The 120-day window also defines the County's use-or-occupancy tax obligation under Anne Arundel County Code §4-6-105: tax is due on the first 120 consecutive days of a stay, after which the rental no longer charges the County use-or-occupancy tax. Annapolis's separate density rule (Ordinance O-17-25, adopted October 2025) caps new short-term rental licenses at 10% of any blockface, with grandfathered renewals through November 2027 and a lottery for over-cap blockfaces, but it does not change the per-bedroom occupancy cap. Maryland HB 20 (2024) addresses statewide ADU policy, not short-term rental occupancy. Annapolis residential zoning districts (R1A, R1B, R1, R2, R3, R3-R, R4, R4-R) generally permit short-term rentals subject to licensing.