Earnings Per Common Share of MAA (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands		3 Months Ended
		Mar. 31, 2017	Mar. 31, 2016
Earnings Per Share Disclosure [Line Items]
Dividends, Preferred Stock, Cash			$ 0
Parent Company [Member]
Earnings Per Share Disclosure [Line Items]
Weighted average common shares - basic		113,338	75,249
Weighted average partnership units outstanding	[1]	4,219	0
Effect of dilutive securities	[2]	307	240
Weighted average common shares - diluted		117,864	75,489
Dividends, Preferred Stock, Cash		$ 922
Calculation of Basic Earnings per Share [Member] | Parent Company [Member]
Earnings Per Share Disclosure [Line Items]
Income from continuing operations		43,416	$ 45,808
Income from continuing operations attributable to noncontrolling interests		(1,511)	(2,395)
Income from continuing operations allocated to unvested restricted shares		(73)	(103)
Dividends, Preferred Stock, Cash		(922)	0
Income from continuing operations available for common shareholders, adjusted		$ 40,910	$ 43,310
Earnings per share - basic		$ 0.36	$ 0.58
Calculation of Diluted Earnings per Share [Member] | Parent Company [Member]
Earnings Per Share Disclosure [Line Items]
Income from continuing operations		$ 43,416	$ 45,808
Income from continuing operations attributable to noncontrolling interests	[1]	0	(2,395)
Dividends, Preferred Stock, Cash		(922)	0
Income from continuing operations available for common shareholders, adjusted		$ 42,494	$ 43,413
Earnings per share - diluted		$ 0.36	$ 0.58
Limited Partnership Units [Member] | Parent Company [Member]
Earnings Per Share Disclosure [Line Items]
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share, Amount		4,200

[1] (1) For the three months ended March 31, 2016, 4.2 million OP Units and their related income are not included in the diluted earnings per share calculations as they are not dilutive.

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