Is it legal to only allow a single person to rent in Maryland?
dcpro50 asked:
In the DC area, some housing postings say they are looking for a single person (for example, to take up a basement apartment). Is it legal for a landlord to specify that only a single person can occupy it, or is there some law that prevents this restriction? Some of these could easily fit a couple, but the landlord obviously wants as little people as possible.
In the DC area, some housing postings say they are looking for a single person (for example, to take up a basement apartment). Is it legal for a landlord to specify that only a single person can occupy it, or is there some law that prevents this restriction? Some of these could easily fit a couple, but the landlord obviously wants as little people as possible.
yes it’s legal it’s their house.
It might depend on the square footage of the rental unit. In many places health departments dictate the square footage for occupancy per person. If they are saying “single person” as in unmarried, then they are discriminating on the basis of marital status, and they are not allowed to do that.
Yes, they can, but I’m sure they mean one.person, they don’t care if you are married or divorced, they juat want one body in the place. Be sure it is a legal apartment. In most places a basement apartment is not legal.
It is not legal to discriminate property rental based on family status, but it would be very hard to prove that someone refused you a rental because of it. Chances are if a landlord is imposing a restriction of this nature it means that he/she is not going to be following the laws properly IE: having you sign a legal lease, taking out insurance, etc… - so you probably don’t want to rent from such a person anyhow.
They can legally say single, as in “one person”. They can not inquire about the exact martial status, it can not be single as in “unmarried”.
No, a landlord can not exempt or discrimination on the number of people. However, they might be legislation in place within the municipality that could restrict occupancy in the unit due to the size. Although most apartments can accommodate at least 2.
The landlord lives upstairs and is not looking for noisy neighbors. He wants a person who is quite and reserved and doesn’t bother them.
dcpro50, I moved from Maryland to Louisiana last year, so I’m not sure who I could contact to assist you. Here is a list of apartments in Maryland that you can call. I’m sure someone can help you.
Enjoy Maryland!