Statutory cap, exemptions, and notice rules under Portland City Code Ch. 6 (Rental Housing Stability Ordinance, 2020)
Maine has no statewide rent control law. Rent regulation here is strictly local, and right now Portland is the only Maine municipality with an active ordinance. Under Portland City Code Ch. 6, the Rental Housing Stability Ordinance passed by 2020 ballot measure, allowable annual rent increases are tied to CPI and capped at 10% no matter how high inflation runs. If your unit is anywhere else in Maine, no percentage cap applies to the amount of the increase at all.
That split is the single most important thing for a Maine landlord or tenant to understand. A renter in Portland is covered by a hard ceiling; a renter in Bangor, Lewiston, Augusta, or any unincorporated area is not. Statewide, average rent runs about $1,028, and Maine carries an eviction-risk score of 5.1 out of 10. The sections below explain who is covered, what the Portland rule does and does not reach, and what governs everyone outside the city limits.
Only one does. Portland adopted rent control directly through a 2020 citizen ballot measure, now codified as the Rental Housing Stability Ordinance (Portland City Code Ch. 6). It ties the maximum allowable annual increase to the Consumer Price Index and sets a firm ceiling: increases may never exceed 10% in a year, even when CPI would otherwise push higher.
No other Maine municipality has an active rent-control ordinance. There is no county-level rent regulation anywhere in the state, and there is no statewide cap that backstops the rest of Maine. In practical terms, the rent-control map of Maine is a map of the City of Portland and nothing else.
Even inside Portland, the cap does not reach every unit. The ordinance carves out two notable categories:
If your Portland rental is in a small building or recently built, the CPI cap likely does not constrain your rent at all — confirm your unit count and the building's age before assuming you are covered. Units that don't fit an exemption remain subject to the CPI-linked, 10%-maximum increase.
Outside Portland, Maine imposes no limit on how much a landlord may raise the rent. There is no statewide percentage cap and no CPI formula governing the amount. A landlord in the rest of the state can set the new rent at market rate when a lease term ends or when a month-to-month tenancy is renewed.
What still applies statewide is the requirement to give proper advance notice before an increase takes effect and to follow Maine's general landlord-tenant rules on how and when a tenancy can change. The amount is unregulated; the process is not. Tenants outside Portland should focus on the notice timeline and the lease terms rather than on a cap that does not exist for them.
Maine's rent-control landscape has been shaped almost entirely at the local level. Portland's ordinance arrived through the 2020 ballot measure rather than the Legislature, and the preemption picture is simple: there is no statewide cap, and no other Maine municipality has enacted an active rent-control ordinance to date.
Because the rule lives in Portland's city code, any change is most likely to come either from the city itself adjusting its ordinance or from a new municipal effort elsewhere. Landlords and tenants who want certainty should check directly with their municipality, since a city ordinance can be amended in ways a statewide statute cannot.
| Rule | Requirement | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Statewide cap | None | Portland City Code Ch. 6 (Rental Housing Stability Ordinance, 2020) |
| 2025 maximum increase | No limit | |
| Notice required | Typically 30-60 days written notice | State landlord-tenant law |
| Retaliation prohibited | Yes, increases cannot be retaliatory or discriminatory | Federal Fair Housing Act + state law |
Even where a cap applies, the following unit types are typically not covered:
If your unit is exempt, the landlord may raise rent to any market-rate amount with proper notice.
These Maine cities currently have or are actively developing rent stabilization ordinances. Caps and covered-unit definitions vary, check your city's municipal code or housing authority for the current allowable increase.
It depends on where you live. In Portland, the annual increase is tied to CPI and can never exceed 10% under the Rental Housing Stability Ordinance. Anywhere else in Maine, there is no cap on the amount of an increase.
Yes, but only at the local level. Maine has no statewide rent-control law and does not impose a statewide cap. Portland legally adopted rent control by 2020 ballot measure under Portland City Code Ch. 6, and it is currently the only Maine city with an active ordinance.
Only if your unit is in Portland and does not fall under an exemption. The cap does not apply to buildings with fewer than 4 units or to new construction during its 15-year exemption. Units outside Portland are not covered by any cap at all.
Yes. Even though most of Maine has no cap on the increase amount, landlords statewide must give proper advance written notice before a new rent takes effect and otherwise follow Maine's landlord-tenant rules. Check your lease and your municipality for the exact notice timeline.
This page summarizes Portland City Code Ch. 6 (Rental Housing Stability Ordinance, 2020) and Maine's lack of a statewide rent cap, with average rent drawn from U.S. Census/BLS-based rental data and the eviction-risk score from EvictionRiskMap's model. Rent-increase limits and notice requirements can change, and Portland's ordinance is administered by the City of Portland; confirm current rules with the City of Portland and the Maine Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection / Maine Attorney General's office before acting. Last reviewed June 2026. This is general information, not legal advice.
Statutory data sourced from published Maine law (Portland City Code Ch. 6 (Rental Housing Stability Ordinance, 2020)), BLS Consumer Price Index (2024-2025), and state agency publications. Census ACS 2023 5-Year Estimates for average rent. Last updated July 14, 2026. This page is informational only and does not constitute legal advice.
