Council gives renters an alternative to security deposits

By Madison Haller and Jonathan Simpson
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writers

The Baltimore City Council approved a bill on Monday that would allow tenants to rent apartments without having to pay a large security deposit in one lump sum before they could move into their housing.  

The legislation, which was adopted on a 12-2 vote with one abstention, would give tenants the option of either buying rental security deposit insurance or paying the traditional security deposit in three installments.   

“This is a very forward-thinking piece of legislation,” said Council Vice President Sharon Green Middleton, D-District 6, the bill’s main sponsor. “These are the tools and options needed to help people. This bill is a barrier that we have broken and we are going to have more bills like this.”

The bill now goes to Mayor Brandon M. Scott, who is expected to sign it into law.

The legislation has been controversial since it was first heard by the council in January. Advocates for renters and the poor say it could actually hurt the very people it is designed to help.

Opponents are especially worried about the provision that allows renters to purchase security deposit insurance because they say it will leave them vulnerable to predatory lenders. In addition, they say renters may also pay more in the long run because they will not be able to challenge certain charges from their landlords.

“Ultimately, this bill is misleading,” the group Baltimore Renters United said in a statement posted on its website. “Instead of protecting renters, it could bind them in increased debt. Renters would be paying into a surety bond, which could in turn take a tenant’s right to protest any landlord charges. This bill is NOT good for Baltimore City renters, and it should not be passed as written.”

 Middleton disputed these claims. She argued that the council will monitor how the law is working and make changes if problems are detected in the future. She also said the state’s insurance regulatory body is an effective way of preventing predatory lending operations.

She said one of the main reasons the bill was written was to eliminate discrimination that African American tenants face from landlords. She said that some security deposits can be so high that renters are essentially priced out of some neighborhoods.

“I have experienced not being able to get in certain communities because of a security deposit,” Middleton said.

Colleagues that worked with Middleton on the bill have had their own personal experiences with discrimination, Middleton said.

Middleton said the bill was supported by the African American faith-based community, adding that the church plays an instrumental role in helping people with their housing problems.

Council members Zeke Cohen, D-District 1, and Ryan Dorsey, D-District 3, opposed the bill. Council member Kristerfer Burnett, D-District 8, abstained.