If you own rental property in Baltimore and your standard screening process includes any language — written or unspoken — that steers away applicants who pay with Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers or other income-based housing subsidies, that practice becomes illegal under Maryland law on October 1, 2026. House Bill 0315, passed during the 2026 Maryland General Assembly session, does two significant things: it prohibits source-of-income discrimination statewide and requires landlords to offer tenants the option of having their positive rent payment history reported to credit bureaus.

This is not a future proposal or a policy under debate. HB 0315 was passed by the Maryland General Assembly and is fifteen days away from taking effect. If you rent property in Baltimore City or Baltimore County, here is what changes, what it means for your screening process, and what you need to do before the effective date.

What HB 0315 Actually Prohibits

At its core, HB 0315 amends Maryland’s fair housing law to add “source of income” as a protected class in housing. This means that a landlord’s decision to reject a rental applicant — or to treat an applicant less favorably — because that applicant intends to pay rent using an income-based housing subsidy is now a discriminatory housing practice under Maryland law.

The most common income-based housing subsidy in Baltimore is the Housing Choice Voucher program (HCV), formerly known as Section 8, administered locally by the Housing Authority of Baltimore City (HABC). But the law’s language is broader than just HCV — it covers any income-based housing subsidy program, which includes other federal, state, and local assistance programs tied to a tenant’s income level.

What “Refusing to Rent” Means Under the Law

The prohibition isn’t limited to explicitly rejecting a voucher holder’s application. It covers a broader set of actions that effectively discourage or exclude subsidy-assisted applicants:

Listing language that says “no vouchers” or “no Section 8” — this language must be removed from all advertising immediately. Zillow, Realtor.com, Facebook Marketplace, your own website, any MLS listings, flyers, yard signs — anywhere your unit is advertised.

Income requirement policies that effectively exclude voucher holders — many landlords use income-to-rent ratios (such as “income must be 3x monthly rent”) that were designed for unassisted tenants. Under HB 0315, applying this standard to voucher holders without accounting for the subsidy portion of rent may constitute unlawful discrimination. The rent-to-income ratio should be calculated against the tenant’s out-of-pocket rent contribution — not the full market rent — for voucher-assisted applicants.

Refusing to participate in required inspections — Housing Choice Voucher tenancies require a HABC inspection before a lease is signed. A landlord who refuses to schedule or cooperate with this inspection as a method of avoiding voucher tenants may be treated as refusing to rent on the basis of source of income.

What HB 0315 Requires: Positive Rental History Reporting

In addition to the discrimination prohibition, HB 0315 includes a second distinct requirement that applies to all landlords regardless of whether their tenant uses a subsidy: landlords must offer every tenant the option of having their positive rental payment history reported to at least one consumer reporting agency (credit bureau).

This provision exists to address a longstanding inequity: negative credit events like evictions and collections are typically reported to credit bureaus automatically, but on-time rent payments — often a tenant’s largest monthly financial obligation — rarely appear on credit reports unless the landlord or a third-party service actively reports them. HB 0315 requires landlords to offer tenants this option.

Key points about the reporting requirement:

It’s an offer, not a mandate to report. The law requires you to offer the option. If the tenant declines, you are not obligated to report. But you must make the offer — and you should document that you did.

The offer should be made at lease signing. Best practice is to include a written disclosure at the time the lease is executed, with the tenant’s signed acknowledgment that the option was offered. Your lease addendum may need to be updated to reflect this.

Third-party reporting services are available. Services like Experian RentBureau, TransUnion SmartMove, and various property management platforms (including Buildium integrations) offer rent payment reporting. These typically involve a nominal cost — sometimes passed to the tenant, sometimes covered by the landlord. You do not need to report directly to the credit bureaus yourself.

What This Means for Your Tenant Screening Process

HB 0315 does not require you to rent to every Housing Choice Voucher applicant who applies. It requires that you evaluate voucher applicants using the same criteria you apply to everyone else — credit history, rental history, background checks, prior landlord references — without disqualifying them solely because of how they pay rent.

You can still screen for creditworthiness. You can still require references and conduct background checks in compliance with Maryland’s criminal background screening rules. You can still set minimum standards for rental history and prior landlord conduct. What you cannot do is apply a blanket exclusion — “no vouchers” — or use income requirements that effectively screen out voucher holders as a category.

If you do screen out a voucher applicant, document your specific, non-income-based reason for doing so. The same documentation discipline that protects you in a premises liability dispute — a clear paper trail showing the specific criteria on which the decision was made — also protects you against a source-of-income discrimination complaint.

The Case for Accepting Vouchers — Beyond Legal Compliance

It’s worth noting that the market case for accepting Housing Choice Vouchers is stronger than many Baltimore landlords realize. HUD data consistently shows that HCV tenants stay in place significantly longer than unassisted market-rate tenants — with median tenancies measured in years, not months. The government-guaranteed portion of the rent is paid directly and reliably. And the tenant base in Baltimore’s rental market includes a significant share of voucher holders — landlords who categorically exclude this group are narrowing their applicant pool substantially.

The most common landlord concern with HCV — the inspection requirement and potential delays — is real but manageable. HABC’s inspection process requires the unit to meet Housing Quality Standards (HQS), which are largely aligned with existing Baltimore City habitability and rental license standards. Properties already in compliance with Baltimore’s rental license and DHCD requirements typically pass HCV inspections without significant issues.

What to Do Before October 1, 2026

Audit your advertising immediately. Pull every active listing across Zillow, Realtor.com, Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, your website, and any other platform. Remove any language that explicitly or implicitly excludes voucher holders — “no vouchers,” “no Section 8,” “private pay only,” or any income requirement expressed as a multiple of full market rent without accounting for subsidy assistance.

Update your screening criteria documentation. Make sure your written screening standards reflect criteria that apply equally to all applicants regardless of payment source. If you use income-to-rent ratios, clarify in your policy that for subsidy-assisted applicants, the ratio applies to the tenant’s out-of-pocket contribution.

Update your lease or add an addendum for rental history reporting. Add a clause offering the tenant the option to have positive rent payments reported to a consumer reporting agency, with a signature line for acknowledgment. Research which reporting service you’ll use before October 1.

Train anyone who handles your applications. If you have staff, a leasing agent, or a property management company handling applicant communications, they need to understand that “no vouchers” is no longer a permissible response — and that the reason for any rejection must be documented against specific, objective criteria.