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, 2021	Mar. 31, 2020
Earnings Per Share Disclosure [Line Items]
Income from Continuing Operations, Including Portion Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest		$ 48,864	$ 37,952
Income from continuing operations attributable to noncontrolling interests		(1,671)	(1,304)
Income from continuing operations allocated to unvested restricted shares		(54)	(50)
Dividends, Preferred Stock, Cash		(922)	(922)
Income from continuing operations available for common shareholders, adjusted		$ 46,217	$ 35,676
Weighted average common shares - basic		114,263	114,111
Earnings per share - basic		$ 0.40	$ 0.31
Income from Continuing Operations, Including Portion Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest		$ 48,864	$ 37,952
Income from continuing operations attributable to noncontrolling interests	[1]	(1,671)	(1,304)
Net income available for MAA common shareholders, adjusted		$ 46,271	$ 35,726
Effect of dilutive securities		312	383
Weighted average common shares - diluted		114,575	114,494
Earnings per common share - diluted		$ 0.40	$ 0.31
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, 2021 and 2020, 4.1 million OP Units and their related income are not included in the diluted earnings per share calculations as they are not dilutive.