Selling a house in Maryland: the paperwork

Every document a Maryland sale commonly touches, who usually produces it, and the law behind it. In most sales the seller's own share is small, and this page shows you which part that usually is.

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14 documents · 7 questions · about a 15 minute read · free, and we don't ask for your email

4documents are usually the seller's

out of 14 in a Maryland sale

Tell us about your sale

Answer what you know. Skip what you don't. Every answer takes something off your list or explains why it stays on.

The home

Was the home built before 1978?

Older homes carry a federal lead paint disclosure. It's the same in every state.

Is the home in an HOA, condo, or co-op?

The association has to produce a package, and they can take weeks. Worth knowing early.

Is the home on the water, or in a flood zone?

Waterfront and floodplain homes pick up extra disclosures in most states.

You and the title

Are you married?

Some states need a spouse's signature even when they're not on the title. Many don't.

Is the home owned by a trust, LLC, or company?

An entity needs paperwork showing who's allowed to sign for it.

Do you file U.S. taxes as a citizen or resident?

If you don't, the buyer has to hold back part of the price and send it to the IRS.

Will you be at the closing yourself?

Signing from a distance takes a power of attorney, and it has to be arranged early.

Usually the seller's to produce

In most sales nobody else prepares these. Whether each one applies to you depends on your home, your title, and your buyer.

MD Residential Property Disclosure/Disclaimer (§ 10-702)Pre-listing / seller's disclosure packet
Federal lead-based paint disclosure (pre-1978)Attached to the purchase agreementOn your list because was the home built before 1978
Deferred water & sewer notice (§ 14-117)In the purchase agreement itself
Critical Area / Buffer disclosurePre-listing / seller's disclosure packet

Usually drafted for you to sign

These commonly arrive already written. Read them, and ask about anything that looks wrong before you sign.

Ground rent disclosure / redemptionPre-listing / title closing packet
HOA resale package (§ 11B-106)In the HOA resale packageOn your list because is the home in an hoa, condo, or co-op
Condominium resale certificate (§ 11-135)In the HOA resale packageOn your list because is the home in an hoa, condo, or co-op

Usually somebody else's to prepare

Commonly handled by a title company, an attorney, a lender, or the county. Listed so none of them is a surprise.

Deed (special/general warranty or quitclaim)Recorded with the county after closing
MW506NRS non-resident withholding returnFiled with a government agency post-closing / at recordingOn your list because do you file u.s. taxes as a citizen or resident
Payoff statement / mortgage releaseIn the title/escrow closing packet
Settlement statement (CD/ALTA)In the title/escrow closing packet
1099-SFiled with a government agency post-closing
Transfer/recordation tax intakeRecorded with the county after closing
Notarial certificate / RONIn the title/escrow closing packet

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What catches Maryland sellers out

The things people find out late here. None of this is a ruling on your sale, and every one of them ends with somebody who can actually answer it for you.

You may be able to sell as is, and still have to disclose

Maryland lets a seller choose between filling in a disclosure of the property's condition and signing a disclaimer instead. Plenty of sellers never learn the second option exists. Either way, the duty to disclose known latent defects generally survives the choice, so a disclaimer is not silence.

The rule behind it: Md. Real Prop. § 10-702
Who can answer it: A Maryland attorney or your title company, before you pick one.

Out-of-state sellers get 8% held back at recording

Maryland withholds a share of the proceeds when the seller is not a Maryland resident, and it happens at recording without anybody needing to raise it. There is an application that can reduce it, but it generally has to be made in advance. Sellers often hear about it after it has already happened.

The rule behind it: Md. Tax-Prop. § 10-912; Forms MW506NRS / MW506AE
Who can answer it: A Maryland tax professional or the title company handling your closing.

Ground rent and deferred water charges ride with the house

Parts of Maryland, Baltimore especially, have properties subject to ground rent, where somebody else owns the land under the house. Some newer developments carry deferred water and sewer charges that a buyer inherits. Both generally have to be disclosed, and neither is visible from the property itself.

The rule behind it: Md. Real Prop. § 14-117; ground rent registration requirements
Who can answer it: A title search answers both. Ask for it early.

How Maryland generally runs a sale

The broad shape of a sale there, as the research found it. Counties and cities add their own rules on top of all of this.

Closing model — hybrid (non-attorney permitted)Maryland permits both attorney-conducted and title-company-conducted settlements. The unauthorized-practice-of-law framework is at Md.

Marital-property regime — common law (NOT community property)Maryland is not a community-property state.

Homestead / spousal joinderMaryland's creditor homestead exemption is $6,000 (Md. Code Ann., Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 11-504(b)(5)). This is not a spousal-joinder-to-convey rule.

Standard deed typeSpecial warranty deed is most common (Md. Code Ann., Real Property § 2-105, § 2-106); general warranty deed (§ 2-105) and quitclaim (§ 2-118) are also used.

Disclosure regime — hybrid disclose-OR-disclaimMd. Code Ann., Real Property § 10-702 lets the seller elect either a disclosure statement OR a disclaimer statement — but latent defects must always be disclosed regardless of election.

Transfer-tax structure — layered (state + county recordation + county transfer)State transfer tax 0.5% (Tax-Property § 13-203), reduced to 0.25% for a first-time Maryland homebuyer's principal residence (§ 13-203(b)); state-authorized but county-set recordation tax;

RON status — permanent, effective since 2020/2021Codified at Md. Code Ann., State Government § 18-214 (RON) and § 18-210 (interstate recognition).

Recording act — race-noticeMd. Code Ann., Real Property § 3-201, § 3-203 (and § 3-101). Recording is with the Clerk of the Circuit Court in each of the 24 jurisdictions (23 counties + Baltimore City).

Notable local overlaysBaltimore City ground rent; Chesapeake/Atlantic Coastal Bays Critical Area; deferred water & sewer (front-foot benefit) disclosure; county-layered transfer/recordation taxes.

Other things Maryland asks about

These come up in Maryland and almost nowhere else. We don't ask them above because we can't answer them for you yet, but they're worth raising with your title company.

MD-1: Is the property in Baltimore City or Anne Arundel County, or an older community — could it be subject to a ground rent? → §§ 6, 8
MD-4: Is the property served by public water/sewer with a deferred water & sewer (front-foot benefit) charge? → §§ 6, 7
MD-5: Is this the initial sale of new construction (never occupied / CO within 1 year)? → § 10-702 exemption, § 5
MD-7: Are you a first-time Maryland homebuyer on the buy side / does the buyer qualify? → transfer-tax rate, § 9
MD-8: Well/septic present (Bay Restoration Fund "flush tax")? → § 6

Before you rely on any of this

This is a compilation of published state requirements, not legal advice, and no lawyer has reviewed it or your sale. Laws and forms change, counties and cities add their own rules, and whether any of this applies to you depends on facts we don't know. Treat every item as a starting point for a question, not as an answer. Confirm anything you plan to rely on against the official source we link, and run your list past a title company or an attorney licensed in your state.

These counts describe a typical sale, not yours. Which documents you need turns on facts about your home, your title, your buyer, and your county, and one unusual answer can add several or remove them.

Who prepares each document is what usually happens, not a rule. Practice differs between states, between counties, and between one title company and the next, and your contract can move work from one side to the other.

Keighbor is not a real estate brokerage and does not represent you. Nobody here is your agent. We don't negotiate, set your price, recommend a course of action, or take a commission. We provide software that helps you organize your side of the sale.

The full Maryland reference

The rest of the research, with every citation kept. This is the same material our own product is built on, and nothing is held back for paying customers. It describes the law as the research found it, not as it applies to your sale.

ALWAYS-required documents

Deed

Form/citation: Special warranty (RP § 2-105, § 2-106), general warranty (§ 2-105), or quitclaim (§ 2-118). Ownership tag [ATTORNEY]; appearance: Recorded with the county after closing.
Contents: grantor/grantee, consideration, legal description, granting/covenant words, execution.
Timing/delivery: executed at settlement; recorded with Clerk of the Circuit Court.
Signature/notarization: grantor's signature acknowledged before a notary (RP § 4-101 et seq.).
Consequences of noncompliance: unrecorded deed is subordinate to a subsequent good-faith purchaser (race-notice, RP § 3-203).
Official source: https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Laws/StatuteText?article=grp; county clerk locator https://www.courts.state.md.us/clerks/circuit.

MD Residential Property Disclosure and Disclaimer Statement

Form/citation: RP § 10-702; single standardized form promulgated by the Maryland Real Estate Commission under COMAR 09.11.07. Ownership [SELLER]; appearance: Pre-listing / seller's disclosure packet.
Contents/timing: see § 7 (prescribed-language item — the central Maryland item).
Official source: Maryland Department of Labor / Real Estate Commission form: https://www.labor.maryland.gov/forms/danddform.doc; statute: https://law.justia.com/codes/maryland/real-property/title-10/subtitle-7/section-10-702/.

Settlement statement + notarial certificate

[TITLE/ESCROW]/[LENDER]; appearance: title/escrow closing packet. Notary acknowledgment required for the deed; RON available under State Gov't § 18-214.

SOMETIMES-required documents (triggered)

Trigger — Non-resident seller (MW506NRS)

Md. Tax-General § 10-912. A non-resident individual/estate/trust: 8.0% withholding; a non-resident entity: 8.25%, applied to the "total payment" (net of mortgage payoff and selling expenses) — effectively gain/proceeds. Filed with, and collected by, the Clerk of the Circuit Court (or SDAT) at recording; a new deed may not be recorded unless the tax is paid. Exemptions require a Certificate of Full or Partial Exemption (Form MW506AE) obtained from the Comptroller in advance (principal residence under IRC § 121 exclusion, zero gain, foreclosure/deed in lieu, etc.). Refund via Form MW506R after 60 days. Recent change: the 2026 edition of MW506NRS is posted by the Comptroller; the 2025 form (COM/RAD-308, rev. 10/23) shows 8.25% for entities and 8.0% for individuals, while a 2026 draft PDF displays an individual line stated as 8.75% — confirm the operative individual/entity rate at the Comptroller before use. Official: https://www.marylandcomptroller.gov (search MW506NRS).

Trigger — Pre-1978 housing (federal lead)

See federal methodology § 10.

Trigger — Deferred water & sewer charge (front-foot benefit)

RP § 14-117. See § 7 for the prescribed statutory notice.

Trigger — Ground rent (Baltimore City, Anne Arundel, some older communities)

RP § 8-101 et seq.; registry § 8-701 et seq. Ground rents must be registered with SDAT; the extinguishment penalty for non-registration (former RP § 8-708) was struck down as unconstitutional (taking of vested property / due process under the Maryland Declaration of Rights, Art. 24, and Constitution Art. III, § 40) in Muskin v. State Dep't of Assessments & Taxation, 422 Md. 544, 30 A.3d 962 (2011). The registration requirement itself survives; SDAT was directed to rescind extinguishment certificates issued under the invalidated provision. Ground rent must be disclosed and typically redeemed or accounted for at settlement. Official: https://dat.maryland.gov/realproperty/Pages/Ground_Rent_Extinguishment.aspx.

Trigger — Critical Area

Nat. Res. § 8-1801 et seq.; a minimum 100-foot buffer landward of the mean high water line of tidal waters, tidal wetlands, and tributary streams (buffer expandable up to 300 feet for contiguous sensitive areas/steep slopes). The Critical Area itself extends 1,000 feet landward of tidal influence. Disclosure of Critical Area status and buffer/impervious-surface limits. Official: https://dnr.maryland.gov/criticalarea.

Trigger — Condo/HOA

HOA resale (RP § 11B-106): the seller furnishes the "MHAA information" — whether the lot is in a development, current and prior-year fees/assessments plus delinquencies, management-agent contact, unsatisfied judgments/pending suits against the HOA, pending covenant claims against the lot, and copies of the articles/declaration/covenants/bylaws/rules — at or before contract, or within 20 calendar days of entering the contract. The buyer has a 5-calendar-day cancellation right measured from receipt of the MHAA information (plus a separate 3-calendar-day right after notice of a fee increase over 10% or another substantial/material amendment adversely affecting the buyer).
Condominium resale (RP § 11-135): the seller furnishes the declaration/bylaws/rules and a resale certificate not later than 15 days before closing; the buyer has a 7-day rescission right measured from receipt of all required information (§ 11-135(f)) — non-waivable (any waiver void), terminating at closing. The association must supply the certificate within 20 days of a unit owner's written request (fee capped, CPI-adjusted).
To satisfy without Realtor forms, the seller requests the resale package directly from the HOA/condo management company. Official: https://law.justia.com/codes/maryland/real-property/title-11/section-11-135/ and .../title-11b/section-11b-106/.

Prescribed-language items (substance-over-form)

RP § 10-702 disclosure OR disclaimer

Operative substance: The statute requires the seller to furnish the purchaser either (a) a Residential Property Disclaimer Statement ("the vendor makes no representations or warranties as to the condition of the real property or any improvements thereon … except as otherwise provided in the contract of sale, or in a listing of latent defects") or (b) a Residential Property Disclosure Statement disclosing known defects. Even under the disclaimer, § 10-702(d)(1) requires disclosure of "any latent defects of which the vendor has actual knowledge that a purchaser would not reasonably be expected to ascertain by a careful visual inspection and that would pose a direct threat to the health or safety of the purchaser or an occupant."
Where/when: delivered on or before the seller and purchaser enter into the contract of sale (§ 10-702(f)(1)). If delivered later, the purchaser has the right to rescind within 5 days of receipt (or before settlement, whichever is earlier).
Exemptions (§ 10-702): initial sale of never-occupied property or CO issued within 1 year; transfers exempt from transfer tax under Tax-Property § 13-207 (with certain exceptions for land installment contracts and options); sale by a lender/affiliate acquiring by foreclosure/deed in lieu; sheriff's/tax/foreclosure/partition/court-trustee sale; among others.
How Realtor/attorney forms handle it: the Maryland REALTORS® contract package incorporates the MREC standardized combined disclosure/disclaimer form. A FSBO must download the MREC form directly (labor.maryland.gov) and deliver it on or before contract; the FSBO must consciously elect disclose vs. disclaim and must still list known latent defects under either election.

RP § 14-117 deferred water & sewer notice

Operative substance: resale contracts for property served by public water/sewer with deferred charges established by recorded covenant must contain a notice "in substantially the following form": "NOTICE REQUIRED BY MARYLAND LAW REGARDING DEFERRED WATER AND SEWER CHARGES — This property is subject to a fee or assessment that purports to cover or defray the cost of installing or maintaining during construction all or part of the public water or wastewater facilities constructed by the developer …" with the amount, annual payment, term, and lienholder contact.
Rescission: if the seller provides written notice after the contract is signed, the buyer has 5 days to rescind in writing without penalty and recover deposits (RP § 14-117(b)(3)). After settlement, an undisclosed charge exposes the seller to liability for the full amount not disclosed. Does not apply in a county that has adopted a substantially similar disclosure (e.g., Prince George's has its own detailed regime under § 14-117.1, with a 20-year amortization cap on initial-sale charges).
FSBO: insert the statutory notice paragraph directly into the PSA; the Maryland REALTORS® "Notice and Disclosure of Deferred Water and Sewer Charges" addendum is the member-form equivalent.

Local / municipal overlays

Not exhaustive — notable examples include:

Layered transfer/recordation tax (accurate as of Oct. 1, 2025; verify with the circuit court clerk). State transfer tax 0.5% (0.25% for a first-time MD homebuyer, seller-paid). State-authorized recordation tax is county-set. Notable examples:

Montgomery County — recent change (Bill 17-23, Council vote 7-4, May 9, 2023; eff. Oct. 1, 2023): recordation is now tiered — a base of $2.08/$500 plus a school increment of $2.37/$500 on all value, plus a premium tier of $2.30/$500 on value $500,000–$600,000, $5.75/$500 on $600,001–$750,000, $6.33/$500 on $750,001–$1,000,000, and $6.90/$500 above $1,000,000 — layered on top of a 1% county transfer tax and the state transfer tax. (The former flat ~$8.90/$1,000-with-1.35%-over-$500K figure is pre-Bill 17-23.)
Anne Arundel County: recordation $7.00/$1,000 (rounded up to the nearest $500); county transfer tax 1% for transactions under $1,000,000 and 1.5% at $1,000,000 or more (a 0.5% surcharge on $1M+ transfers).
Baltimore City: deeds for sales over $1,000,000 are subject to a fourth tax (the Yield Tax) on top of state transfer, city transfer, and recordation.
Prince George's County: county transfer-tax rate with tiered principal-residence exemptions and its own § 14-117.1 deferred-charge regime.
IDOT recordation deferral — recent change: the indemnity-deed-of-trust recordation-tax deferral threshold increased from $3,000,000 to $12,500,000, effective July 1, 2024.
Baltimore City: ground rent concentration; vacant/abandoned property programs; rental registration/inspection.
Ocean City / Worcester County: coastal + Critical Area overlays; resort-market non-resident concentration (MW506NRS relevance).

Post-closing obligations

Recording of the deed with the Clerk of the Circuit Court; race-notice priority (RP § 3-203).
Transfer/recordation taxes collected at recording; MW506NRS withholding remitted to the Clerk/SDAT for non-resident sellers (must be paid before recording).
1099-S reporting by the settlement agent (federal, see § 10).
Mortgage payoff and recording of a certificate of satisfaction/release by the lender of record (RP § 7-105 release framework).
Non-resident sellers must still file a Maryland income tax return (e.g., Form 505) reconciling the MW506NRS withholding; refund via MW506R after 60 days.

Federal overlays (cross-reference)

See 01-methodology-v2.md § 8 for the full federal overlay set: Title X lead-based paint (pre-1978); FIRPTA (26 U.S.C. § 1445); 1099-S (26 U.S.C. § 6045(e)); wire-fraud advisory; Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. § 3601); RESPA/TRID.

FinCEN Residential Real Estate Rule (31 CFR 1031.320) — currently suspended. The Rule was effective March 1, 2026, but the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas vacated it nationwide on March 19, 2026 in Flowers Title Companies, LLC v. Bessent. FinCEN filed an appeal to the Fifth Circuit on May 11, 2026. A conflicting Middle District of Florida decision, Fidelity National Financial, Inc. v. Bessent, No. 3:25-cv-554-WWB-SJH (M.D. Fla.) (Feb. 19–20, 2026), upheld the Rule. Net effect for Maryland settlement agents: no filing obligation pending the Fifth Circuit appeal. Recheck currency before quoting.

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