Maine Tenant Screening Laws: What Landlords Can and Cannot Do
Maine caps deposits at two months, penalizes wrongful retention, and protects applicants who receive public assistance. The FCRA and fair housing law govern who you approve. Here is how to screen legally in 2026.
Tenant screening in Maine pairs a firm deposit statute with a fair housing law that protects applicants who receive public assistance. Maine’s security deposit chapter sets the limit and the penalties, while the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act governs every screening report and the Maine Human Rights Act governs who you may approve.
This guide covers what you may screen, the deposit rules, public-assistance protection, and adverse action. If you are new to the mechanics, our overview of how to screen tenants step by step pairs well with the Maine-specific points below.
Video: a plain-language walkthrough of Maine tenant screening, application fees, deposits, and adverse action.
Key Takeaways: Maine Tenant Screening Laws
- No application-fee cap. Maine does not limit screening fees, but they must be reasonable and tied to the actual cost of the report.
- Deposits are capped at two months’ rent under 14 MRS 6032, held separate from the landlord’s own assets.
- Wrongful retention is costly. A landlord who keeps the deposit in bad faith can owe double the amount plus costs and attorney’s fees.
- Public assistance is protected. The Maine Human Rights Act bars rejecting an applicant because they receive public assistance, including housing subsidies.
What Maine Law Lets You Screen
Maine landlords may screen credit, rental and payment history, income, and criminal background with written authorization, and may decline applicants who fail objective written standards. Maine’s deposit statute sets the cost and handling rules around that screening, not the right to do it.
Apply your standards identically to every applicant, since Maine protects applicants who receive public assistance. Our guide to the minimum credit score for renting explains how to set a threshold that screens for risk without screening out a protected class.
Application Fees in Maine: No Cap
Maine sets no maximum on a tenant application or screening fee. The practical limits are reasonableness and consistency: tie the fee to the actual cost of the report and charge the same amount to every applicant.
Uneven fees, or fees collected without genuine screening, draw fair housing scrutiny even where no cap exists. Treat the fee as part of a documented, even-handed process.
The deposit carries real penalties
Maine caps the deposit at two months, requires it to be held apart from your own funds, and lets a tenant recover double damages plus fees for a bad-faith retention. The deposit is the part of Maine screening with teeth.
Security Deposits Under 14 MRS 6032
Maine limits the security deposit to two months’ rent. The landlord must hold the deposit separate from personal assets, and after the tenancy ends must return it with a written statement of any deductions, generally within thirty days for a written lease and twenty-one days for a tenancy at will.
The penalty for getting it wrong is significant: a landlord who retains the deposit in bad faith can be liable for double the amount wrongfully withheld, plus costs and reasonable attorney’s fees. Our deeper look at Maine security deposit laws covers permitted deductions and the holding rules.
Public Assistance Is a Protected Class
The Maine Human Rights Act protects applicants who receive public assistance, which functions as a source-of-income protection. A landlord generally cannot refuse to rent to, or refuse to consider, an applicant simply because their rent would be paid in whole or part with a Housing Choice Voucher or other public assistance.
You may still apply the same income, credit, and rental-history standards to a voucher holder that you apply to everyone else – the protected trait is the assistance, not the screening criteria. For the broader picture, see our Fair Housing Act guide for landlords.
Criminal History, Credit, and Eviction Records
A criminal record can be a lawful basis to decline in Maine, but a blanket no-record policy is the most common fair housing trap. HUD’s 2016 guidance treats criminal-records screening under a disparate-impact lens, so a flat ban can violate the federal Fair Housing Act even without intent. Use an individualized assessment tied to the offense, how recent it is, and safety.
Credit history and prior evictions are cleaner when your standard is objective and consistently applied. You can read how eviction filings arise on our Maine eviction notice laws page. Decide your criteria in advance and apply them the same way every time.
The FCRA: Consent and Adverse Action
On top of Maine’s rules, the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act governs every screening report. You need a permissible purpose and written authorization before ordering the report, and you must send an adverse action notice if the report drives a denial, a higher deposit, or a co-signer demand.
The notice must name the reporting agency, state that it did not make the decision, and explain the applicant’s right to a free copy and to dispute it. Our FCRA compliance guide and the companion walkthrough of the adverse action notice spell out the requirements.
Fair Housing Compliance for Maine Landlords
The Maine Human Rights Act adds public assistance to the protected classes, raising the stakes: uniform criteria, uniform application, and documentation showing you treated every applicant by the same yardstick, voucher holders included.
Publish your criteria before you advertise, screen every applicant against the identical standard, and keep the file. A consistent record is your strongest answer to any complaint.
A Compliant Maine Screening Process
Turn the rules into one repeatable sequence. First, publish objective criteria. Second, collect a reasonable, uniform screening fee. Third, get written consent and order the report. Fourth, evaluate every applicant against the identical standard, including those who receive assistance. Fifth, if you decline based on a report, send the adverse action notice promptly – and hold and return the deposit as the statute requires.
Income verification still matters; our guide to verifying tenant income shows how to confirm ability to pay without singling anyone out. Run the same steps for every applicant and your file will tell a clean, consistent story.
Common Mistakes That Create Liability
The recurring Maine errors are over-collecting on the two-month deposit, commingling it with personal funds, missing the return deadline, and rejecting an applicant because they receive public assistance. Bad-faith retention triggers the double-damages penalty, and denying an applicant on a report without the FCRA notice rounds out the list.
One standard, every applicant. Maine caps the deposit, penalizes bad-faith retention, and protects public assistance. Build the two-month cap, the separate holding, the return deadline, and public-assistance compliance into your standard workflow.
Screening Applicants Who Receive Assistance in Maine
Because Maine protects applicants who receive public assistance, screening a voucher holder deserves its own routine. Count the voucher toward the applicant’s ability to pay, and apply any income-to-rent ratio to the portion of the rent the tenant actually pays rather than the full contract rent, since the subsidy covers the rest. Imposing a higher income multiple on a voucher holder than on a market-rate applicant is precisely the kind of rule that becomes a violation.
You may still verify identity, run credit and criminal screening on the same terms as everyone else, and confirm rental history. The protection bars treating the assistance as a disqualifier, not the legitimate, evenly applied criteria you use for every applicant. Document that an assisted applicant was screened against the identical standard, and the file defends itself.
Documentation and Recordkeeping in Maine
Maine’s penalties make your records the difference between compliance and exposure. For every applicant, keep the signed authorization, a dated copy of the written criteria, the screening results, and every adverse action notice, so the file shows you judged every applicant – assisted or not – against the same standard.
On the deposit, retain proof of the separate account where it was held, the written statement of deductions, dated move-in and move-out records, and repair invoices. Because bad-faith retention carries double damages plus fees, the file should document the basis for every deduction.
Set one retention policy and apply it to every applicant, approved or denied. A consistent multi-year record of authorizations, criteria, screening results, adverse action notices, and deposit accountings is what answers a Maine Human Rights Commission inquiry or a deposit suit. The record of identical treatment is as important as any single decision in it.
Do
- ✓Publish your written screening criteria before you advertise, and apply them to every applicant.
- ✓Get written authorization before pulling any report, and keep the signed consent on file.
- ✓Send an FCRA adverse action notice on every denial that rests on a consumer report.
- ✓Assess any criminal record case by case, weighing the offense, how recent it is, and safety.
- ✓Handle the security deposit and its return exactly as the state statute requires, and document it.
Avoid
- ✕Charge uneven application fees, or collect a fee with no genuine screening behind it.
- ✕Treat a permissive state as a lawless one – the FCRA and federal fair housing law always apply.
- ✕Apply a blanket ban on any criminal record, which risks a disparate-impact violation.
- ✕Improvise your standards applicant by applicant instead of following one written rubric.
- ✕Skip the deposit paperwork the statute requires, from itemization to any required notices.
Maine Tenant Screening Laws: FAQ
Can a Maine landlord run a background check on an applicant?
Yes. With written authorization you may obtain a consumer report covering credit, rental history, income, and criminal convictions. The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act requires a permissible purpose and consent before any screening report is pulled.
Is there a limit on application fees in Maine?
No. Maine does not cap tenant application or screening fees. Keep the fee reasonable, tie it to the actual cost of screening, and charge it consistently to every applicant.
What is the maximum security deposit in Maine?
Two months’ rent under 14 MRS 6032. The deposit must be held separate from the landlord’s own assets and returned with a written statement of deductions, generally within thirty days for a written lease.
What happens if a Maine landlord wrongfully keeps the deposit?
A landlord who retains the deposit in bad faith can be liable for double the amount wrongfully withheld, plus costs and reasonable attorney’s fees.
Is source of income a protected class in Maine?
Maine protects applicants who receive public assistance, which functions like a source-of-income protection, so a landlord generally cannot reject an applicant simply because rent would be paid with a voucher or other public assistance.
Can a Maine landlord deny an applicant for a criminal record?
A conviction can be a lawful reason to decline, but blanket bans are risky. HUD’s 2016 guidance warns that a flat no-record policy can create a disparate-impact violation, so use an individualized assessment tied to the offense, how recent it is, and safety.
Does a Maine landlord have to send an adverse action notice?
Yes. If a denial, a higher deposit, or a co-signer requirement rests in any part on a consumer report, the FCRA requires an adverse action notice naming the reporting agency and explaining the right to a free report and to dispute it.
Does Maine require deposits to be held separately?
Yes. Maine requires the landlord to hold the security deposit separate from personal assets, and a bad-faith failure to return it can expose the landlord to double damages plus fees under 14 MRS 6032.
How long should a Maine landlord keep tenant screening records?
Keep applications, signed authorizations, screening results, adverse action notices, and deposit accountings for every applicant – approved or denied – for several years. In Maine, a consistent retention policy is the evidence that you treated every applicant by the same standard if a fair housing or deposit dispute later arises.
When must a Maine landlord send the adverse action notice?
Send it promptly whenever a consumer report contributes to an adverse decision – a denial, a higher deposit, or a co-signer requirement. The FCRA notice must name the reporting agency, state that it did not make the decision, and tell the Maine applicant how to get a free copy of the report and dispute any error.
Related Maine and Screening Guides
- Tenant screening laws by state – compare Maine to the rest of the country.
- Maine security deposit laws – deductions, itemization, and the return deadline.
- Maine eviction notice laws – notice periods and the eviction timeline.
- Maine rent increase laws – notice rules for raising the rent.
- Maine late fee laws – what you can charge for late rent.
- How a tenant background check works – what a report includes.
- Maine habitability laws – your maintenance obligations as a landlord.
Screen Maine Applicants the Compliant Way
Order FCRA-ready credit, criminal, and eviction reports and keep your Maine process consistent from application to decision.
Published by Tenant Screening Background Check · Editorial Team
Established 2004. Our editorial team has spent two decades helping landlords and property managers run lawful, FCRA-compliant tenant screening across all 50 states. We translate state landlord-tenant codes and federal screening rules into processes you can actually follow.
Legal Disclaimer
This article is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Maine and federal laws change, and how they apply depends on your specific facts. Before acting on any screening, fee, deposit, or fair housing question, consult a licensed attorney in Maine. Reading this page does not create an attorney-client relationship.
