Maryland Short-Term Rental Laws by City (2026)
Short-term rental rules in Maryland are set city by city — a property that is legal to rent nightly in one town can be prohibited a few miles away. The table below covers 2 Maryland cities (2 human-verified against official sources), with each city's legal status, permit cost, and last-verified date.
Statewide short-term rental rules in Maryland
Maryland has no statewide short-term rental license or registry — licensing, zoning, caps, and permits are left entirely to counties and cities, and state law expressly does not preempt local STR regulation. At the state level, every STR stay is subject to the 6% Maryland sales and use tax, which platforms like Airbnb and Vrbo must collect and remit (hosts taking direct bookings must register with the Comptroller and collect it themselves). Beginning October 1, 2026, the Jillian and Lindsay Wiener Short-Term Rental Safety Act (Ch. 9 of 2026) requires every STR unit rented for under 30 days to have working smoke and CO alarms, a fire extinguisher, a posted evacuation diagram and emergency numbers, with mandatory annual local inspections phased in by July 1, 2028. City and county rules apply on top of state law — check your local market's page.
Full statewide rules: permits, taxes & enforcement
Maryland has no statewide short-term rental license or registry — licensing, zoning, caps, and permits are left entirely to counties and cities, and state law expressly does not preempt local STR regulation. At the state level, every STR stay is subject to the 6% Maryland sales and use tax, which platforms like Airbnb and Vrbo must collect and remit (hosts taking direct bookings must register with the Comptroller and collect it themselves). Beginning October 1, 2026, the Jillian and Lindsay Wiener Short-Term Rental Safety Act (Ch. 9 of 2026) requires every STR unit rented for under 30 days to have working smoke and CO alarms, a fire extinguisher, a posted evacuation diagram and emergency numbers, with mandatory annual local inspections phased in by July 1, 2028. City and county rules apply on top of state law — check your local market's page.
Reviewed by the STR Rule Watch research team against 8 official sources. How we verify data
Maryland statewide STR rules at a glance
| Legal status | Allowed, no permit required |
|---|---|
| Permit required | No |
| Total occupancy taxes | ~6% of gross revenue |
| Insurance | None statewide. Maryland imposes no STR-specific insurance mandate on hosts. (Under the 2026 Safety Act, third-party fire-safety inspectors — not hosts — must meet insurance requirements set by the State Fire Marshal.) |
| Enforcement | Tax side: the Comptroller enforces sales-and-use-tax collection; platforms/intermediaries and hosts can be held jointly liable for uncollected tax. |
| Current rules effective | 2019-06-01 |
State law & local authority
No preemption: Maryland leaves land-use, licensing, caps, and bans to counties, Baltimore City, and municipalities. The 2026 Wiener STR Safety Act (Ch. 9) states it may not be construed to require a county or Baltimore City to authorize STRs, nor to preempt or prohibit them from enacting additional STR measures — it actually mandates that each county and Baltimore City where STRs are allowed adopt local laws requiring annual safety inspections by July 1, 2028. The only preemptive element in state law is narrow and tax-administrative: SB 979 (Ch. 638 of 2025, effective July 1, 2027) centralizes collection of local hotel rental taxes from accommodations intermediaries with the Comptroller and provides that state law prevails over conflicting local laws or agreements on that tax.
State-level taxes
| Tax | Rate | Who collects |
|---|---|---|
| Maryland sales and use tax on accommodations / short-term rentals6% of the full listing price including cleaning fees. Short-term rental platforms have been required to collect and remit since June 1, 2019 (Chapters 704 & 758 of 2019); accommodations intermediaries were captured earlier by Ch. 3 of 2016. Airbnb/Vrbo collect at booking; hosts taking direct bookings must register and collect themselves. Maryland has no separate state lodging tax — county hotel rental taxes (roughly 4%-9.5%) are local levies, and from July 1, 2027 intermediaries will remit those county taxes to the Comptroller for distribution (SB 979, Ch. 638 of 2025). Airbnb also reports collecting 6% state sales tax... plus 3% on its service fees (reflecting Maryland's 2025 tax on data/IT services). | 6% | varies |
Enforcement & penalties
Tax side: the Comptroller enforces sales-and-use-tax collection; platforms/intermediaries and hosts can be held jointly liable for uncollected tax. Safety side (Ch. 9 of 2026, effective Oct 1, 2026): the State Fire Prevention Code has the force of law statewide and is enforced by the State Fire Marshal and designated local fire officials; each county and Baltimore City where STRs are allowed must require annual inspections of all STR units by July 1, 2028 (inspection fees authorized, third-party inspectors permitted), report to the State Fire Marshal by July 1, 2028, and booking services (Airbnb, Vrbo, etc.) must electronically notify hosts of the fire-safety requirements and require hosts to provide confirmation documentation.
Knowing violations of Public Safety Article Title 6 (State Fire Prevention Code, which the 2026 STR safety requirements fall under) are a misdemeanor punishable by up to 10 days imprisonment and/or a fine of up to $1,000. Tax noncompliance exposes hosts and platforms/intermediaries to joint liability for unpaid sales and use tax plus penalties and interest.
Statewide sources
- Maryland General Assembly — HB 1221 (2026), Public Safety – Short-Term Rental Units – Safety (Jillian and Lindsay Wiener Short-Term Rental Safety Act), Ch. 9 of 2026retrieved July 11, 2026
- DLS Fiscal and Policy Note — HB 1221 (2026), Third Reader Revisedretrieved July 11, 2026
- Maryland General Assembly — SB 533 (2019), Sales and Use Tax – Short-Term Rentals, Ch. 758 of 2019retrieved July 11, 2026
- DLS Fiscal and Policy Note — SB 979 (2025), Local Government – Accommodations Intermediaries – Hotel Rental Tax – Collection by Comptroller, Ch. 638 of 2025retrieved July 11, 2026
- Maryland Code, Tax-General § 11-101 (definitions: accommodation, accommodations intermediary, short-term rental, short-term rental platform)retrieved July 11, 2026
- Governor Wes Moore press release — Signs Legislation Securing Short-Term Rental Safety (April 14, 2026)retrieved July 11, 2026
- Comptroller of Maryland — Technical Bulletin No. 46, Home Amenity Rental Sales and Use Tax (Ch. 805 of 2023, effective July 1, 2024)retrieved July 11, 2026
- Airbnb Help Center — Occupancy tax collection and remittance by Airbnb in Marylandretrieved July 11, 2026
| City | Status | Permit fee | Last verified |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore | Primary residence only | $200 | July 21, 2026 |
| Ocean City | Permit required | $246 | July 13, 2026 |
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This page is informational only and is not legal, tax, or financial advice. Regulations change frequently — verify current requirements with each jurisdiction before operating. HOA and condo rules may prohibit short-term rentals regardless of city law.