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
		Mar. 31, 2020	Mar. 31, 2019
Earnings Per Share Disclosure [Line Items]
Income from Continuing Operations, Including Portion Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest		$ 37,952	$ 65,958
Income from continuing operations attributable to noncontrolling interests		(1,304)	(2,298)
Income from continuing operations allocated to unvested restricted shares		(50)	(87)
Dividends, Preferred Stock, Cash		(922)	(922)
Income from continuing operations available for common shareholders, adjusted		$ 35,676	$ 62,651
Weighted average common shares - basic		114,111	113,726
Earnings per share - basic		$ 0.31	$ 0.55
Income from Continuing Operations, Including Portion Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest		$ 37,952	$ 65,958
Income from continuing operations attributable to noncontrolling interests	[1]	(1,304)	(2,298)
Net income available for MAA common shareholders, adjusted		$ 35,726	$ 62,738
Effect of dilutive securities		383	207
Weighted average common shares - diluted		114,494	113,933
Earnings per share - diluted		$ 0.31	$ 0.55
Limited Partnership Units [Member]
Earnings Per Share Disclosure [Line Items]
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share, Amount		4,100	4,100

[1] For the three months ended March 31, 2020 and 2019, 4.1 million OP Units and their related income are not included in the diluted earnings per share calculations as they are not dilutive.