For nonpayment of rent complaints, the filing fee for landlords has gone up, and they can only charge this to tenants if they win a court judgment and the lease allows for it. If a court awards a surcharge, it can’t exceed the tenant’s security deposit, protecting renters’ rights. Regarding security deposits, landlords can now…

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Rafael Escalera Montoto 8/25/2024 5:30 a.m. EDT For the second time in a year and a half, Victor found himself in the hospital after one of his three kids woke up with excruciating pain. The first cockroach pulled from his 8-year-old’s ear was alive. Another one had died inside. Bugs were not the only problem…

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Story by the Baltimore Banner – 5/21/2024 5:07 p.m. EDT Inside the Baltimore sheriff’s office, Sam Cogen boasts of the department’s new computer system, new equipment and new staff members brought on at his direction since the start of his term nearly 18 months ago. But the biggest change? Look no farther than the top…

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Maryland Gov. Wes Moore signed the Renters’ Rights and Stabilization Act and other housing legislation into law during a bill signing ceremony at the State House in Annapolis on Thursday. Del. Chris Adams, R-Wicomico/Caroline/Dorchester/Talbot, a landlord, was not there, and thus did not participate in the smiling and celebratory atmosphere. Neither were, so far as…

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Tenant in November 2023 eviction attempt says drawn guns were unnecessary. Judgement had been paid. GAITHERSBURG, Md. — Montgomery County Sheriff’s deputies are being accused of using excessive force to perform an eviction at gunpoint that turned out to be on shaky legal ground, according to the recording of the incident. The accusations are being made…

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by JACKSON WALKER | The National DeskWed, March 20th 2024 at 11:14 AM NEW YORK CITY (TND) — A homeowner in New York City was taken away in handcuffs after she tried to change the locks on her home to keep out a group of alleged squatters, ABC 7 reported. Adele Andaloro told the outlet she is the…

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Article – Business Regulation § 7-101.       (a)      In this title the following words have the meanings indicated.       (b)      “Board” means the State Collection Agency Licensing Board.       (c)      “Collection agency” means a person who:             (1)      engages directly or indirectly in the business of collecting for, or soliciting from another, a consumer…

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The Appellate Court of Maryland (under the then-named Maryland Court of Special Appeals) further defined the permitted-but-not-encouraged actions of self-help repossession in Donegal Assocs., LLC v. Christie-Scott, LLC, 248 Md. App. 448 (2020) by setting out a three-step inquiry approach: (1) Is the tenant in default under the terms of the lease; (2) Do the terms…

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Self-Help. Ok or Not? Commercial Property“Self-help,” in a leasing context, typically refers to the landlord’s historical remedy of locking out a defaulting tenant and obtaining possession of the premises without going through judicial procedures. Traditionally under the common law, a landlord was subject to few limitations in choosing its remedies against a defaulting tenant, including…

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Maryland Court of Appeals Re-Affirms the Landlord Self-Help RemedyWhat is “self-help”? Self-help is the act of peacefully enforcing one’s rights without resorting to the court process.  Self-help is legal in Maryland as long as it is reasonable, peaceful, and does not violate some other law.  The difficulty or complexity in implementing self-help is not to…

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