ANNAPOLIS, MD—Governor Wes Moore this week signed legislation aimed at expanding housing construction, which is expected to help reduce instability in the state’s housing market and make it more affordable.

“We made the choice to put housing front-and-center this year because we know this issue can’t wait. Building a stronger housing market can’t wait. Tackling a housing shortage of 96,000 units in Maryland can’t wait,” said Governor Moore. “We introduced the most comprehensive housing package of any Maryland administration in recent history – and we were unapologetic about it.”

One of the new laws, the Housing Expansion and Affordability Act, will incentivize the construction of new housing by removing barriers to development and modernizing land use law to make it easier for developers to build transit-oriented developments and affordable housing near former state-owned complexes.

Another new law, the Housing and Community Development Financing Act, will strengthen the state’s financing tools for tackling vacant houses by creating the Maryland Community Investment Corporation. This new corporation will be able to unlock tens of millions in federal funding for housing development projects in low-income communities.

The third new law, the Renters’ Rights and Stabilization Act, will protect Maryland renters from housing instability by creating the Office of Tenant and Landlord Affairs to provide tenants with information about their rights and creating the Maryland Tenants Bill of Rights. This new law also increases the eviction filing fee in an attempt to address the high number of eviction filings in the state.

The state hopes that these new measures will help to reduce the housing shortage and make Maryland a more affordable place to live.

This article was written with the assistance of AI and reviewed by a human editor.

Photo via the Maryland Governor’s Office