Maine landlord rules: deposits, late fees and notices

Security deposit

Maximum deposit

2 months' rent

Return deadline

30 days after the tenancy ends

Penalty for late return

2x deposit

Interest owed

No

Note

21 days for tenancies at will

Work out the return date for a move-out

Source: 14 M.R.S. §§6032-6038

Late fees

Rule

capped at 4% of monthly rent

Grace period

15 days

No statute cited in our data

Notice periods

Notice to pay or quit

7 days

Ending a month-to-month tenancy

30 days

Notice before entering a unit

24 hours

Note

Portland requires just cause for termination

Work out the last day of a notice

No statute cited in our data

Screening

Source-of-income protection

Yes, statewide. Refusing a housing voucher is illegal.

No statute cited in our data

Verify this with the statute or a local attorney before you act on it. The rule changed recently or has known ambiguity.

Licensing

To manage for others

No license required.

No statute cited in our data

How long an eviction takes

Moderate: about 1 to 2 months. This is a rough tier from our data, not a court timeline.

Portland rent cap

Formula

70% of CPI plus any rent-board actions

This year's figure

This year's figure is not loaded in our data. Use the formula and check the publisher.

Published by

Portland rent board, annually

Applies to

Portland

Source: Portland rent control ordinance

A federal rule that can override this

Notice for nonpayment on covered properties

30 days

Note

Applies to 'covered properties' (federally backed mortgage or federal housing program). The 30-day notice requirement has no statutory sunset and courts are split - safest practice is a 30-day nonpayment notice on any covered property, regardless of shorter state timelines.

Source: CARES Act §4024