Earnings Per Common Share of MAA - Schedule of Computation of Diluted Earnings per Share (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands		3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
		Jun. 30, 2022	Jun. 30, 2021	Jun. 30, 2022	Jun. 30, 2021
Earnings Per Share Disclosure [Line Items]
Income from Continuing Operations, Including Portion Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest		$ 216,560	$ 223,875	$ 330,137	$ 272,739
Income from continuing operations attributable to noncontrolling interests		(5,858)	(7,397)	(8,633)	(9,068)
Income from continuing operations allocated to unvested restricted shares		(149)	(234)	(228)	(294)
Dividends, Preferred Stock, Cash		(922)	(922)	(1,844)	(1,844)
Income from continuing operations available for common shareholders, adjusted		$ 209,631	$ 215,322	$ 319,432	$ 261,533
Weighted average common shares - basic		115,353	114,494	115,306	114,379
Earnings per share - basic		$ 1.82	$ 1.88	$ 2.77	$ 2.29
Income from Continuing Operations, Including Portion Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest		$ 216,560	$ 223,875	$ 330,137	$ 272,739
Income from continuing operations attributable to noncontrolling interests	[1]	(5,858)	(7,397)	(8,633)	(9,068)
Net income available for MAA common shareholders, adjusted		$ 209,780	$ 215,556	$ 319,660	$ 261,827
Effect of dilutive securities		203	318	336	311
Weighted average common shares - diluted		115,556	114,812	115,642	114,690
Earnings per common share - diluted		$ 1.82	$ 1.88	$ 2.76	$ 2.28
Limited Partnership Units [Member]
Earnings Per Share Disclosure [Line Items]
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share, Amount		3,200	3,900	3,200	4,000

[1] For the three and six months ended June 30, 2022, 3.2 million OP Units and their related income are not included in the diluted earnings per share calculations as they are not dilutive. For the three and six months ended June 30, 2021, 3.9 million OP Units and 4.0 million OP Units, respectively, and their related income are not included in the diluted earnings per share calculations as they are not dilutive.