Queen Anne's County, MD Short-Term Rentals: Short-Term Rental Parking Rules (2026)

The short-term rental standards were added by Ord. No. 24-09 on 11-26-2024. Subsection J(1) names increases in parking requirements as one of the neighbor impacts the rules are written to control, along with frequent change over of guests and excessive noise. Subsection J(2)(d) turns that concern into a flat condition: parking for all occupants and guests shall be provided on-site. The text has no on-street or neighboring-lot alternative, so every vehicle a guest brings has to fit on the rental property itself.

Because the rule covers guests as well as overnight occupants, the daytime visitors permitted by the crowd limits count. With public sewer or water, the code allows up to 20 persons at any one time, including overnight occupants, or the capacity of the sewer or water service, whichever is less. Overnight occupants who are 18 or older are limited to 10 or two persons per bedroom, whichever is less. On private septic the limit is two persons per bedroom or the treatment capacity of the septic system.

The parking condition is a precondition of the zoning approval. Under J(2)(e), the Department cannot issue the zoning certificate until the property has been inspected for compliance with applicable building, habitability and fire safety codes. After the first issuance, an owner can self-certify by affidavit with each annual application, and a County inspection is required every five years. The County reserves the right to inspect during certificate review, and § 18:1-208 authorizes entry for inspection. The certificate is issued annually under § 18:1-138. The owner must also register the use with the Queen Anne's County Finance Office for the hotel rental tax.

The rule applies on Kent Island and everywhere else in the unincorporated county. Centreville, Queenstown and the other incorporated towns follow their own codes.