Maryland: Eviction Notice Requirements

Requirements one by one

Notice for unpaid rent

Maryland does not let a landlord file the moment rent is late. Before filing a
failure-to-pay-rent case (called "summary ejectment"), the landlord must first
give you "a written notice of the landlord's intent to file a claim in the
District Court... if the tenant does not cure within 10 days after the written
notice is provided" (§ 8-401(c)(1)). That notice is a form the Maryland Judiciary
publishes (DC-CV-115, captioned "This is not a notice of eviction"). Paying the
rent due within those 10 days is a cure — it stops the case before it starts. The
statute sets a flat 10-day count with no weekend-or-holiday exclusion, so unlike
a California-style "business day" count, ordinary weekends fall inside the 10
days.

Notice for a lease violation

For a non-rent breach of the lease — an unauthorized pet, an extra occupant, a
fixable nuisance — the landlord must have "given the tenant 30 days' written
notice that the tenant is in violation of the lease and the landlord desires to
repossess the leased premises" (§ 8-402.1(a)(1)(i)2.A). One important limit:
this breach-of-lease path is available only "where an unexpired lease for a
stated term provides that the landlord may repossess the premises... if the
tenant breaches the lease." If your written lease has no such repossession
clause, the landlord cannot use the 30-day breach route at all.

Unconditional quit (no cure allowed)

Maryland has no true "quit on sight" notice — even serious misconduct runs on a
notice period. The shortest is 14 days: where the breach "involves behavior...
which demonstrates a clear and imminent danger of the tenant or person doing
serious harm to themselves, other tenants, the landlord, the landlord's property
or representatives, or any other person on the property," the landlord may file
after "14 days' written notice" instead of 30 (§ 8-402.1(a)(1)(i)2.B). It is a
faster notice, not an immediate termination, and it too depends on the lease
allowing repossession for a breach.

Ending a month-to-month tenancy

To end a month-to-month tenancy when the tenant has done nothing wrong, the
landlord must give "60 days before the expiration of the tenancy" written notice
(§ 8-402(c)(2)(i)) — the same 60 days applies to any written lease for a term
longer than a week. A week-to-week tenancy takes 7 days' notice if there is a
written lease and 21 days if there is not. (Year-to-year and farm tenancies have
their own longer periods, 90 and 180 days.)

How the notice must be served

For the nonpayment notice, the statute is specific: it "shall be in a form
created by the Maryland Judiciary," and it counts as given when it is sent by
"first-class mail, certificate of mailing," affixed "to the door of the
premises," or — "if elected by the tenant" — sent by email, text, or an
electronic tenant portal (§ 8-401(c)(2)). Electronic delivery is allowed only
when the tenant chose it and must give the landlord proof of transmission. The
later court complaint must state the date the notice was provided, and "a tenant
may challenge" that assertion, with the court able to dismiss on "a showing of
sufficient cause."

Tenant's right to cure/reinstate

Maryland gives tenants unusually strong pay-and-stay rights for unpaid rent.
First, paying within the 10-day notice window stops a filing. Second, if a case
is filed, tendering "the rent and late fees determined by the court to be due and
unpaid, together with the costs of the suit" at the trial means "the complaint
against the tenant shall be entered as being satisfied" (§ 8-401(e)(5)). Third,
even after the landlord wins a judgment, the tenant "shall have the right to
redemption... by tendering... all past due amounts... plus all court awarded
costs and fees, at any time before actual execution of the eviction order"
(§ 8-401(h)). That redemption right is cut off for a tenant who has had "three
judgments of possession... entered for rent due and unpaid in the 12 months
prior" to the case. Separately, Maryland bars retaliatory eviction: a landlord
"may not... bring or threaten to bring an action for possession" because the
tenant complained in good faith about a lease violation or a health-or-safety
condition, sued the landlord, or joined a tenants' organization (§ 8-208.1),
with a 6-month presumption window and damages up to three months' rent.

What trips people up

The 60 days for a month-to-month is longer than the 30 days many expect.
Maryland's no-fault termination notice for a month-to-month tenancy is 60 days,
not the 30 days common in other states. A 30-day notice to a month-to-month
tenant is defective, and a case filed on it can be dismissed.

The breach-of-lease route depends on your lease. The 30-day (or 14-day)
breach notice under § 8-402.1 only works "where an unexpired lease... provides
that the landlord may repossess the premises... if the tenant breaches." If the
lease has no repossession-for-breach clause, the landlord is limited to the
nonpayment path (for unpaid rent) or waiting out the term and terminating the
tenancy on notice.

Pay-and-stay reaches surprisingly far — but not forever. You can stop a
nonpayment eviction by paying everything owed plus costs right up until the
sheriff actually executes the eviction order. But that safety net disappears if
you have had three possession judgments for unpaid rent against you in the prior
12 months (four in Baltimore City), and the retaliation defense is available only
if you are current on the rent.

Common questions

My landlord filed for eviction the day after rent was late. Is that allowed?
No. Maryland requires a written 10-day notice of intent to file before a
failure-to-pay-rent complaint can be filed, on the Judiciary's form. A case filed
without first giving that notice — and stating the notice date in the complaint —
can be challenged and dismissed.

Do the 10 days for rent include weekends? Yes. The statute sets a flat 10-day
period running from when the notice is provided, with no exclusion for weekends
or holidays, so those days are counted (unlike states that count only business
days).

Can my landlord evict me with no reason? For a month-to-month tenancy, yes —
by giving 60 days' written notice before the tenancy ends. Maryland has no
statewide "just cause" requirement, though some counties (such as Montgomery
County and Baltimore City) impose their own rules, which this state-law page does
not track.

If I pay everything I owe, can I still be evicted for the back rent? For
unpaid rent, generally no: paying all rent, late fees, and court costs — even
after a judgment, up until the eviction is physically carried out — lets you stay,
unless you have had three such judgments against you in the past year.

Statutes and sources

• Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-401 — nonpayment summary ejectment: 10-day notice of intent to file and cure (c)(1); notice service methods (c)(2); tender-at-trial satisfies the complaint (e)(5); post-judgment redemption right and 3-judgments-in-12-months cutoff (h).
  https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/laws/StatuteText?article=grp&section=8-401 (accessed 2026-07-10)
• Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-402 — holdover and periodic-tenancy termination: 60 days for month-to-month; 7/21 days week-to-week.
  https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/laws/StatuteText?article=grp&section=8-402 (accessed 2026-07-10)
• Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-402.1 — breach of lease: 30 days' written notice, or 14 days for a clear and imminent danger of serious harm.
  https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/laws/StatuteText?article=grp&section=8-402.1 (accessed 2026-07-10)
• Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-208.1 — retaliatory action prohibited; 6-month window; damages up to 3 months' rent.
  https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/laws/StatuteText?article=grp&section=8-208.1 (accessed 2026-07-10)