A decade of failed attempts
Maryland lawmakers tried repeatedly to bring a real-property transfer-on-death deed to the state, with bills introduced in at least 2014, 2015, 2022, and 2023 — each one failing to become law. By the time those earlier bills stalled, over thirty other states had already authorized some version of this tool, many of them adopting the Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act that the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws completed back in 2009.
Finally enacted in 2026
The Maryland Transfer-on-Death Deed Act finally passed in the 2026 legislative session, codified at Real Property § 14-1001 through § 14-1014. Once in force, it lets an individual owner transfer real property to one or more beneficiaries at death, without probate, by recording a deed that complies with Maryland's general deed requirements under § 4-101 of the Real Property Article and expressly states the transfer occurs at the transferor's death.
Effective for deaths on or after October 1, 2026
The Act's effective date is October 1, 2026, but it applies more broadly than that date alone might suggest: a TOD deed made before, on, or after that date is valid, as long as the transferor dies on or after October 1, 2026. In other words, someone who signs and records a TOD deed slightly ahead of the effective date doesn't have to redo it once the law takes effect — but a deed has no effect at all if the owner dies before that date.
No consideration, no delivery required
Like most states' versions of this tool, Maryland's Act doesn't require the deed to be supported by consideration, and it doesn't require notice, delivery, or acceptance by the beneficiary during the transferor's lifetime. The owner can record the deed without the beneficiary's involvement at all, and keeps full control over the property — selling, mortgaging, or revoking the deed — for as long as they're alive.
Exempt from recordation and transfer taxes
Recording a TOD deed doesn't trigger Maryland's usual recordation and transfer taxes, which would ordinarily apply to a deed transferring real property. This exemption is written directly into the Act, making the deed a relatively low-cost tool to set up compared to some alternatives.
How it compares to existing options
Before the Act took effect, Marylanders relied on a life estate deed, joint tenancy or tenancy by the entirety, or a living trust to keep real estate out of probate. The TOD deed adds a new option that, unlike joint tenancy, doesn't require adding anyone as a co-owner during the transferor's life — the named beneficiary has no interest in the property at all until death.