Document and Entity Information (USD $) Share data in Thousands, unless otherwise specified	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2013	Nov. 04, 2013
Document Information [Line Items]
Document Type	10-Q
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Sep. 30, 2013
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2013
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3
Trading Symbol	MAA
Entity Registrant Name	MID AMERICA APARTMENT COMMUNITIES INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000912595
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		74,776,229
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Public Float	$ 2,896,227,801