If you own or manage rental properties in Maryland, a new law took effect on July 1, 2025 that directly affects your responsibilities when tenants report mold. Here's what you need to know — and what you need to do to stay compliant.
What is the Maryland Tenant Mold Protection Act?
The Maryland Tenant Mold Protection Act (SB 856) is a new statewide law that establishes clear timelines and standards for how landlords must respond when mold is reported in a rental property. Prior to this law, there were no statewide requirements for mold assessment or remediation in rental units. That has changed significantly.
What does the law require?
The law places three primary obligations on landlords:
First, landlords must provide tenants with a mold information brochure at the time of lease signing and upon request — similar to the lead paint disclosure requirement that landlords are already familiar with.
Second, when a tenant reports mold in writing, the landlord must perform a mold assessment within 15 days of receiving that notice. This is a hard deadline, not a guideline.
Third, if mold is detected during the assessment, the landlord must complete mold remediation within 45 days of the assessment. The law does allow some flexibility if full remediation cannot be completed within that window — but the landlord must communicate with the tenant throughout the process and document the reason for any delay.
Who can perform the mold assessment?
This is where the law gets particularly relevant for landlords making decisions about who to call. The law requires that the mold assessment and remediation follow industry standards — and specifically recommends that for anything over 10 square feet or involving hidden mold, landlords hire a certified mold assessor who is independent from the remediation company.
This recommendation reflects a fundamental conflict of interest that the law is designed to address: when the same company that assesses the severity of your mold problem is also paid to remediate it, there's a financial incentive to find — and potentially overstate — problems. An independent assessor has no stake in remediation, which means the scope of work they recommend reflects the actual condition of the property.
What are the consequences of non-compliance?
The law tasks multiple state agencies — including the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development — with tracking mold reports and enforcing compliance. Landlords who fail to respond within the required timelines face potential regulatory penalties in addition to private liability from tenants.
Beyond the regulatory risk, failure to address mold promptly exposes landlords to personal injury claims from tenants who experience health effects from mold exposure. Having documented evidence of a timely, independent assessment is your best defense.
What should landlords do now?
The best thing a Maryland landlord or property manager can do right now is establish a relationship with a certified, independent mold inspector before you receive a tenant complaint — so you're not scrambling to find someone when the 15-day clock starts ticking.
Whitehead Environmental provides independent mold assessments for landlords and property managers across Harford County, Baltimore County, and Howard County, Maryland. Keith Whitehead is a Licensed Certified Mold Inspector (CMI) and IICRC certified technician with over 5,000 inspections completed since 2001. Because we are inspection-only and never perform remediation, we are exactly the type of independent assessor the law recommends.
Call 443-294-8980 to discuss your property portfolio and how we can help you stay compliant with Maryland's new mold law.