--- title: "How to Price a Rental Property in Southern Maryland" description: "Set the rent for a Southern Maryland home with comparables, condition, and HUD's FY2027 Fair Market Rent by county. See what a free assessment covers." url: https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/landlord-center/rental-property-evaluations publisher: Real Property Management Gold phone: +1-301-392-2172 assessment: https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/contact-us#assessment --- # How to Price Your Southern Maryland Rental: Comps, Condition, and HUD Benchmarks Set rent from three things: recent rents of similar nearby homes (comparables), your home's condition, and local conditions. HUD's FY2027 Fair Market Rent gives a county benchmark. It is not a prediction for one house. For a real number on your address, request a free rental assessment. Landlord CenterUpdated October 29, 20266 min read - **Three inputs.** Comparable rents, your home's condition, and local conditions set the price. A listing price is a test, not a promise. - **HUD benchmark.** HUD's FY2027 Fair Market Rent for St. Mary's County is $1,787 for a 2-bedroom and $2,242 for a 3-bedroom. Charles, Calvert, and Prince George's use ZIP-level figures. - **A benchmark, not a forecast.** HUD sets Fair Market Rents for voucher programs. They show a federal payment benchmark, not what your house will rent for. - **Free assessment.** The client's free rental property evaluation sends a report with rent estimates, rental comps, and local metrics. It has no cost and no contract. ## What could your home rent for? ZIP code2061020615, Broomes Island20629, Solomons20639, Huntingtown20657, Chesapeake Ranch Estates20676, St. Leonard20678, Prince Frederick20685, St. Leonard20688, Solomons20689, Chesapeake Beach20714, North Beach20732, Chesapeake Beach20736, Owings20754, Dunkirk20601, Waldorf20602, Waldorf20603, Bensville2061120612, Benedict20616, Bryans Road20617, Bryantown20622, Charlotte Hall20625, Cobb Island2063220637, Hughesville20640, Bryans Road2064520646, La Plata2065820661, Cobb Island2066220664, Rock Point20675, Pomfret20677, Port Tobacco Village2069320695, Waldorf20613, Brandywine20745, National Harbor20772, Upper Marlboro20606206092061820619, California20620, Callaway206212062420626206282063020634, California2063620650, Leonardtown20653, Lexington Park2065620659, Mechanicsville20660206672067020674, Piney Point2068020684206862068720690, Tall Timbers20692, Tall Timbers BedroomsStudioStudio11 bedroom22 bedrooms33 bedrooms44 bedrooms HUD benchmark rent $2,242/month County Fair Market Rent, St. Mary's County. HUD FY2027. Silver 8.9% $200 fee $2,042 to you Gold 10.9% $244 fee $1,998 to you Platinum 12.9% $289 fee $1,953 to you One-time tenant placement: **$1,856** (6.9% of a 1-year lease at this rent). [Get a real rent number, free](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/contact-us?zip=20653&beds=3#assessment) HUD Fair Market Rents are a federal benchmark for voucher programs, not an appraisal of your home. Fees from [our published pricing](https://www.realpmgold.com/property-management-fees). Data retrieved 2026-10-29. [How this works](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/rent-check) ## How is the rent for a rental house set? Rent is set by what a renter will pay for your home in today’s market, and you test that with comparables, condition, and timing. Start with similar homes close to yours, adjust for your home’s condition and features, and then watch how the listing performs. Three inputs do most of the work. 1. **Comparables.** These are recent rents of homes like yours: same area, bedrooms, and size. Look at homes that were rented, not only homes that are asking. An asking price that sits for weeks tells you something too. 2. **Condition.** A home that is [rent ready](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/landlord-center/what-is-rent-ready), with clean paint, working systems, and no deferred repairs, supports a higher rent and shows well. Condition also shapes how fast a renter signs. 3. **Terms and extras.** A fenced yard, a garage, a pet policy, and included services change what renters pay. The client lists a $50 per month fee for each approved pet and no pet deposit on its renter terms, which is a lease term, not a rent adjustment. The glossary defines [market rent](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/glossary/market-rent). It means what a unit would likely rent for in the open market. Nobody can read it from a table. You find it by comparing real homes. ## What is HUD’s Fair Market Rent, and why use it? HUD’s Fair Market Rent (FMR) is a federal benchmark for voucher programs, not a prediction of what a specific home will rent for. HUD says FMRs are used to determine payment standard amounts for the Housing Choice Voucher program and several other programs. HUD’s FMR page labels them 40th percentile rents. Use it as a reasonableness check. If your 3-bedroom asking rent is far above the FMR for your area, a voucher holder may not be able to rent it. If it is far below, ask why. Everything on this page refers to HUD’s FY2027 Fair Market Rent, the figures current at the time of writing. HUD publishes new ones each year, so check HUD for the latest. St. Mary’s County has one county-wide figure. Calvert County, Charles County, and Prince George’s County use Small Area FMRs, which HUD sets by ZIP code. County How HUD sets it 2-bedroom 3-bedroom St. Mary’s One figure for the county area $1,787 $2,242 Calvert By ZIP code (14 ZIPs) $1,480 to $2,840 $2,050 to $3,930 Charles By ZIP code (22 ZIPs) $1,820 to $3,310 $2,310 to $4,220 Southern Prince George’s (Brandywine, National Harbor, Upper Marlboro) By ZIP code (3 ZIPs) $1,920 to $2,910 $2,450 to $3,710 Monthly dollars. Source: HUD FY2027 Fair Market Rent pages for the St. Mary’s County, Calvert County, and Washington-Arlington-Alexandria areas. The county ranges are the lowest and highest ZIP figures for ZIP codes that sit mostly in that county. ## What do the HUD figures look like for sample ZIP codes? ZIP-level figures show why one county number does not fit every street. A few examples from the same HUD tables: ZIP code Area 2-bedroom 3-bedroom 20653 Lexington Park (St. Mary’s) $1,787 $2,242 20657 Lusby area (Calvert) $1,790 $2,480 20678 Prince Frederick (Calvert) $1,480 $2,050 20646 La Plata (Charles) $1,960 $2,500 20601 Waldorf (Charles) $2,590 $3,300 20613 Brandywine (Prince George’s) $2,910 $3,710 ZIP codes do not match town lines, and a few cross county lines, so look up your own ZIP on HUD’s site. None of these numbers is a market rent. They are a benchmark for voucher programs, and a home can rent for more or less. Do not set a price from this table alone. Solomons Island. Photo: Acroterion, CC BY-SA 4.0. ## How do vouchers fit into pricing? A housing voucher is a lawful source of income in Maryland, and you may not refuse an applicant because of it. HUD uses the Fair Market Rent to set voucher payment standards, so the benchmark shapes what a voucher can cover. Our [housing voucher guide for Maryland landlords](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/landlord-center/housing-vouchers-maryland-landlords) covers the process, and the glossary has a short [housing choice voucher](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/glossary/housing-choice-voucher) entry. Price the home for the market first. Then use the FMR to know whether your price sits within the range most voucher payment standards cover. If it does not, that is a business choice, not a reason to turn away an applicant who qualifies. Screen every applicant by the same written standards, and keep your notes. ## What does the client’s free assessment cover? The client offers a free rental property evaluation. It says the report “includes rent estimates, rental comps, and local metrics,” and that there is “No cost, no contract, no pressure.” You fill out a form with your contact details and the property address, and the client sends the report. Use the [Rent Check page](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/rent-check) to start. The report supports a listing price. A good price also helps with [days on market](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/glossary/days-on-market). On its Gold and Platinum plans, the client makes this promise, which is included in those plans: “If we don’t rent your property in 29 days or less, you do not pay a management fee for the first month.” A price that matches the market is part of keeping that promise. Plan prices are on the [fees page](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/property-management-fees). ## What mistakes do owners make when they set the rent? Most pricing mistakes come from using the wrong anchor. Watch for these. - **Pricing from your costs.** Your mortgage, taxes, and repairs do not set what a renter will pay. They set what you need. If the market rent falls short, the gap is an investment question, not a pricing one. - **Copying one listing.** One neighbor’s asking rent can be too high, too low, or for a different layout. Use several rented homes. - **Ignoring condition.** A home with worn floors or old fixtures does not rent like a freshly turned one, even with the same bedrooms. - **Forgetting the fee side.** Rent has to cover management and leasing costs too. On the client’s published fees, tenant placement is 6.9 percent of the 1-year lease total, charged once after move-in, and management is 8.9 percent (Silver), 10.9 percent (Gold), or 12.9 percent (Platinum) of monthly rent. At $2,200 rent, that is $1,821.60 for placement (6.9 percent of $26,400) and $239.80 per month on Gold. This is arithmetic on the published rates, not a quote. If the client takes over a home that already has a tenant, there is no placement fee. - **Skipping the plan for increases.** Maryland requires at least 90 days’ written notice of a rent increase for tenancies longer than one month. Our [rent increase guide](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/landlord-center/maryland-rent-increase-rules) explains the rule, so price the first lease with the second year in mind. ## How should I test the price once it is listed? Treat the first weeks as a test. Set the price from your comparables, list with good photos, and track what happens: the number of inquiries, showings, and applications. If the home draws steady interest, the price is working. If it draws almost none after the first stretch, review the comparables again before you change anything else. The client’s published promise gives you a clock to work with on its Gold and Platinum plans. Its tenant placement service lists enhanced professional photos, which help a listing get seen. ## Why inspect a rental while it is occupied? Price the home at listing, then protect it while it is rented. Many owners never see the inside of the house until the tenant moves out, and good tenants can leave damage behind if repairs went unreported. A routine look catches two kinds of problems. - **Lease violations.** Someone living in the home who is not on the lease, or a pet that was not approved. A person who is not on the lease has not been screened. - **Maintenance needs.** Small leaks, missing HVAC filters, or a removed smoke detector. A small repair costs less than the damage it can cause. The client says it performs periodic maintenance inspections for $199. Its Silver plan includes a mid-year inspection, and Gold and Platinum clients are on a quarterly schedule. The Gold and Platinum plans also include HVAC filter replacement at no extra cost. A move-in inspection record, taken before the tenant arrives, is what you compare against later. ## Next step Want a real number for your address? Request a free assessment at [/contact-us](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/contact-us) or call (301) 392-2172. This page is general information, not legal advice. Laws change; check the linked official source or talk to a Maryland attorney. ## Frequently asked questions ### How do I decide how much rent to charge? Look at what similar homes nearby rent for now, then adjust for your home's condition, bedrooms, pet policy, and features. Compare asking rents and rents that were actually signed. A free assessment from a local manager gives you comparables and local metrics for your address. ### What is HUD's Fair Market Rent? It is a federal benchmark. HUD uses Fair Market Rents to set payment standards for the Housing Choice Voucher program and other programs. HUD's FMR page describes them as 40th percentile rents. They are not a prediction of what a specific home will rent for. ### What is the 2027 Fair Market Rent in St. Mary's County? HUD's FY2027 Fair Market Rent for the St. Mary's County area is $1,328 for an efficiency, $1,642 for a 1-bedroom, $1,787 for a 2-bedroom, $2,242 for a 3-bedroom, and $2,853 for a 4-bedroom. HUD may publish new figures each year, so check the HUD page. ### Why do Charles and Calvert County have a range instead of one number? HUD uses Small Area Fair Market Rents for Calvert County and for the Washington area that includes Charles and Prince George's counties. Those are set by ZIP code, so a home in one ZIP can have a very different benchmark than a home a few miles away. ### Can I charge more than the Fair Market Rent? Yes. Fair Market Rent is not a cap on private rent. A housing voucher's payment standard follows it, so a home priced far above the benchmark may not work for a voucher holder. Maryland protects source of income, so a lawful voucher cannot be a reason to refuse an applicant. ### What does the client's free rental assessment include? The client says its report includes rent estimates, rental comps, and local metrics, with no cost, no contract, and no pressure. You fill out a form with the property address and the client sends the report. Call (301) 392-2172 to ask what to expect for your property. ## Terms on this page - [Housing Choice Voucher](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/glossary/housing-choice-voucher) - [Move-in inspection](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/glossary/move-in-inspection) - [Days on market](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/glossary/days-on-market) - [Management fee](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/glossary/management-fee) - [Market rent](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/glossary/market-rent) - [Pet deposit](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/glossary/pet-deposit) - [Rent-ready](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/glossary/rent-ready) ## Sources 1. [HUD User: Fair Market Rents](https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/fmr.html) 2. [HUD User: FY 2027 Fair Market Rent, St. Mary's County, MD HUD Metro FMR Area](https://www.huduser.gov/datasets/fmr/fmr2027/summary?year=2027&reporttype=hmfa&hmfa=METRO30500N24037) 3. [HUD User: FY 2027 Fair Market Rent, Calvert County, MD HUD Metro FMR Area](https://www.huduser.gov/datasets/fmr/fmr2027/summary?year=2027&reporttype=hmfa&hmfa=METRO30500N24009) 4. [HUD User: FY 2027 Fair Market Rent, Washington-Arlington-Alexandria HUD Metro FMR Area](https://www.huduser.gov/datasets/fmr/fmr2027/summary?year=2027&reporttype=hmfa&hmfa=METRO47900M47900) 5. [Real Property Management Gold: Home page, free rent report](https://www.realpmgold.com/) 6. [Real Property Management Gold: Property Management Fees](https://www.realpmgold.com/property-management-fees) 7. [Real Property Management Gold: Property Management Fees](https://www.realpmgold.com/property-management-fees) Checked against the sources above on October 29, 2026. Laws, fees and programs change, so check the linked page before you act. ## Keep reading - [Maryland Lead Paint Rules for Rental Homes Built Before 1978Maryland owners of rental homes built before 1978 must register each unit with the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE), keep the registration current, and get a lead inspection certificate at every change of tenant, unless the home is certified lead-free. MDE's own pages show two different fees, so check the current fee.](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/landlord-center/dme-lead-paint-compliance) - [The Maryland Eviction Process for Unpaid Rent, Step by StepIn Maryland, a landlord who is owed rent must first give the tenant written notice of intent on form DC-CV-115, with 10 days to pay. If the rent stays unpaid, the landlord files in District Court. After a win, a warrant of restitution lets the sheriff or constable carry out the eviction.](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/landlord-center/southern-maryland-evictions) - [Maryland Late Fees and Rent Collection: What Southern Maryland Owners Can Charge and DoMaryland law bars a lease from setting a late penalty above 5 percent of the unpaid rent for the rental period. Collect in steps: send a written reminder, offer to talk, then give the 10-day notice of intent on form DC-CV-115. Only after that can you file in District Court.](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/landlord-center/southern-maryland-collections) ## Ask what your home could rent for. Free. A free rental assessment from our offices in Lexington Park and Waldorf. No cost, no contract, no pressure. [Request a free assessment](https://realpmgold.multisites.ai/contact-us#assessment)[(301) 392-2172](tel:+13013922172)