Maryland landlords sue Baltimore City, Howard County and Salisbury over COVID-related bans on rent increases

It has not been determined how long Hogan will keep the current state of emergency in place; he has renewed it six times, most recently on Thursday. COVID-19 cases are on the rise in Maryland.

U.S. District Judge Stephanie A. Gallagher denied the landlords’ request for a temporary restraining order last month. In her opinion, the judge said she did not intend to “minimize the significant harm” that the businesses are dealing with.

“Housing providers are not immune from the economic havoc that COVID-19 has wreaked in this state, and across the country,” she wrote.

 

“The inability to increase rent, and to fully yield what the market might dictate for a particular property, must feel interminable, particularly where it prevents the entities from budgeting and making accurate financial projections,” the judge wrote.

 

“On the other hand, this court is understandably reluctant to disturb legislative enactments, intended to address the needs of Marylanders during a time of sincere desperation,” Gallagher wrote. She cited soaring numbers of unemployment claims. Invalidating the acts, she wrote, may have “far-reaching consequences” that include “pushing many closer to the brink of financial ruin.”

 

“These local governments have made a determination that, in the midst of an unprecedented pandemic, Marylanders should not have to absorb increases in their rent payments,” she wrote. “That point is critical. Plaintiffs are not deprived of the ability to generate any rental income from their properties, but rather may not increase the rents for the time being.”