The Global Background Check Blog

Effective October 1, 2026, Maryland fair housing law expressly prohibits housing practices with a discriminatory effect—even when there was no intent to discriminate. The change matters for Maryland tenant screening compliance because it can affect how landlords and property managers use criminal-history, eviction, credit, income, and score-based rental criteria. This is a separate law from the Maryland Fair Chance Housing Act: Tenant Screening Rules for 2026, which addresse

Maryland’s Fair Chance Housing Act took effect October 1, 2026. The law changes when covered housing providers may obtain and use a prospective tenant’s criminal-history information. For most covered landlords, criminal history can no longer be part of the initial rental-application process. Instead, the landlord generally must evaluate other qualifications first, make a conditional offer of housing, and then follow Maryland’s new review and notice requirements before withdra