Maryland Late Rent Fee Cap (Real Property § 8-208)

Md. Code, Real Property § 8-208(d)(3) prohibits a residential lease from providing "a penalty for the late payment of rent in excess of 5% of the amount of unpaid rent due for the rental period for which the payment was delinquent." For leases under which rent is paid in weekly installments, the lease may not provide "a late penalty of more than $3 per week or a total of no more than $12 per month." Section 8-208 lists this among prohibited lease provisions, so a clause exceeding these limits is void and unenforceable against the tenant. The statute does not require any grace period before a permitted late fee may be charged, and the cap is measured against the delinquent rent, not the full monthly rent.

A late-fee clause exceeding 5% of the delinquent rent (or the weekly $3/$12 limits) is an unenforceable prohibited provision; the tenant is not obligated to pay the excess (Real Property § 8-208).