HOA Rules in Maryland (2026)
27 rules on the books across Maryland, 5 cities and counties. Select a rule to read the full details.
Severity: Few Restrictions · Light Restrictions · Some Restrictions · Significant Restrictions · Heavy Restrictions
Board Procedures
Rules governing HOA board meetings, elections, transparency requirements, and voting procedures for homeowners.
Maryland: statewide
StatewideSome RestrictionsThe Maryland Homeowners Association Act requires open meetings (Real Prop. § 11B-111) and owner access to association…
Read full rule →Prince Georges County
Significant RestrictionsEvery HOA, condo association and co-op in Prince George's County must register with the Office of Community Relations…
Read full rule →Montgomery County
Some RestrictionsHOAs in Montgomery County are governed by the Maryland Homeowners Association Act (Real Property Article 11B) which…
Read full rule →Architectural Review
Standards and approval processes for exterior modifications including paint colors, additions, fencing, landscaping changes, and solar panel installation.
Assessment & Dues
Rules about regular assessments, special assessments, collection procedures, late fees, and what happens when homeowners fall behind on dues.
Maryland: statewide
StatewideHeavy RestrictionsA Maryland HOA collects delinquent assessments through a contract lien under the Maryland Contract Lien Act (Real Prop…
Read full rule →Montgomery County
Some RestrictionsMaryland HOA Act (Real Property 11B) governs assessment collection in Montgomery County HOAs. Regular assessments must…
Read full rule →Prince Georges County
Few RestrictionsPrince George's County runs a Commission on Common Ownership Communities to mediate HOA disputes, but Sec. 13-316 draws…
Read full rule →Dispute Resolution
Processes for resolving conflicts between homeowners and the HOA board, including mediation requirements, hearing procedures, and state oversight.
Charles County
Some RestrictionsCharles County offers a formal alternative to a lawsuit for HOA disputes: the Homeowners' Association Dispute Review…
Read full rule →Montgomery County
Some RestrictionsMaryland law provides multiple paths for resolving HOA disputes, including internal hearings, the Montgomery County…
Read full rule →Prince Georges County
Some RestrictionsBefore an HOA dispute in Prince George's County can go to court, residents must exhaust their association's own…
Read full rule →CC&R Enforcement
How covenants, conditions, and restrictions are enforced, including violation notices, fines, lien authority, and legal remedies available to HOAs and homeowners.
Maryland: statewide
StatewideFew RestrictionsMaryland overrides HOA covenants on several fronts: Real Prop. § 2-119 bars unreasonable limits on solar collectors, §…
Read full rule →Prince Georges County
Significant RestrictionsPrince George's County doesn't referee your HOA's covenants directly, but a rental license can still die because of…
Read full rule →Charles County
Some RestrictionsCharles County does not enforce homeowners' association covenants and restrictions directly; a governing body's own…
Read full rule →Montgomery County
Some RestrictionsMontgomery County HOAs enforce covenants, conditions, and restrictions (CC&Rs) through violation notices, fines, and…
Read full rule →HOA Disputes
Internal dispute-resolution processes required by statute, ombuds programs, and when a homeowner can sue the board directly without exhausting internal remedies.
HOA Fines & Enforcement
Statutory caps on HOA fine amounts, notice-and-hearing requirements before fines can be assessed, and how unpaid fines become liens against the property.
Maryland: statewide
StatewideSome RestrictionsMaryland Real Property § 11B-111.10 bars a homeowners association board from imposing a fine, suspending voting, or…
Read full rule →Charles County
Some RestrictionsAn HOA's authority to fine a member is disputable in Charles County: Code § 247-2 defines a dispute the county's HOA…
Read full rule →Montgomery County
Some RestrictionsMontgomery County lets HOA owners dispute a fine before the Commission on Common Ownership Communities, and once a…
Read full rule →Lien & Foreclosure Limits
What an association must clear before it can foreclose on a home for unpaid assessments: minimum debt thresholds, waiting periods, mandatory notice and payment-plan offers, and the states that bar foreclosure where the debt is fines and late fees rather than assessments.
Board Governance
Governance structure of the HOA (board composition, term lengths, election procedures), open-meeting requirements, and member voting rights under state statutes.
Howard County
Some RestrictionsHoward County requires condominium regimes and cooperative housing corporations, not ordinary single-family HOAs, to…
Read full rule →Montgomery County
Some RestrictionsMontgomery County regulates HOA board elections under Chapter 10B: associations must give 10-90 days' notice, ban…
Read full rule →Prince Georges County
Some RestrictionsPrince George's County regulates homeowners associations, condo associations and co-ops through a 15-member Commission…
Read full rule →Rockville
Some RestrictionsRockville has no homeowners' association ordinance of its own. City Code § 1-8(b) reaches back into Montgomery County…
Read full rule →Flag Display Rights
When an association may restrict flags on a lot and when it may not, the federal floor protecting the American flag, and state statutes extending that protection to state, military, and first-responder flags, along with the pole height and placement conditions a board can still impose.
Clotheslines & Energy Devices
Right-to-dry statutes that void covenants banning outdoor clotheslines and drying racks, plus the broader energy-device provisions covering heat pumps, rain barrels, and similar equipment an association would otherwise prohibit on appearance grounds.
EV Charger Rights
Statutory rights to install an electric vehicle charging station in a deeded or exclusive-use parking space, the approval conditions an association may still attach, and who carries the insurance, electricity cost, maintenance, and removal obligation.
Drought Landscaping Rights
Laws barring an association from requiring live turf or fining a homeowner for a brown lawn during declared drought or water restrictions, and the water-efficient and native landscaping a covenant may not prohibit outright.