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ARTICLE · 08 AUGUST 2025

Multifamily August 2025 Alert

Ballard Spahr LLP
Ballard Spahr LLP
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Ballard Spahr LLP

Ballard Spahr LLP

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We start our August Alert with some potentially very good news. The RENTAL Act, a bill to reform TOPA, passed its first vote by the DC Council on July 28, 2025.

United StatesReal Estate and Construction
Roger D. Winston
Roger D. Winston
Kyle A. DeThomas
Kyle A. DeThomas
Forrest Albiston
Forrest Albiston
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We start our August Alert with some potentially very good news. The RENTAL Act, a bill to reform TOPA, passed its first vote by the DC Council on July 28, 2025. The RENTAL Act includes, among other things, a blanket exemption from TOPA for the first 15 years after a property's initial construction. More details on the RENTAL Act are below.

We wish we had similar good news in Maryland regarding rent control. Although Rockville once again voted 7-2 against a proposal to subject Rockville properties to rent control (like Gaithersburg, Rockville continues to be exempt from rent control), there are no efforts underway to revoke or reform rent control in Montgomery or Prince George's Counties. Indeed, Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich recently suggested that he was hopeful the Montgomery County Council will revisit the rent cap stating, "We initially proposed a three percent cap unless inflation or necessary repairs necessitated a higher rate of increase." (Marc

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