Housing -- General

The Western Division Housing Court Reporter is an unofficial compilation of decisions and orders issued by the Western Division Housing Court. This reporter is a collaborative effort by and among several individuals representative of the Court, the local landlord bar, and the local tenant…

Fall River is riding a wave of exciting changes including the long awaited arrival of the South Coast Rail and a massive waterfront redevelopment. While working class and low income city residents welcome the city’s revitalization, they also need protections from rising rents, eviction and…

Powerpoint presentation by the Housing Court at the September 23, 2024 community outreach event.

Materials from the September 24, 2024 Tenants' Rights in Massachusetts training, presented as part of the MLRI/MCLE Basic Benefits Training Series: Agenda Faculty Bios Powerpoints: Introduction Evictions Part 1 Evictions Part 2 MADE, UpToCode, and Housing…

The charts below set forth the annual, monthly and weekly 2024 Federal Poverty Guidelines (based on HHS thresholds).  In addition, the annual, monthly and weekly 115% of poverty, 125% of poverty,  187.5%, 200% of poverty and 300% of poverty amounts are listed. Finally, you can…

Welcome to the online course on the eviction process.  The purpose of this course is to give advocates a basic introduction to the eviction process in light of substantive and procedural changes to court rules during the COVID-19 pandemic. The course is free. It takes about an…

See attached order providing: Notwithstanding G. L. c. 186, G. L. c. 239 or any general or special law to the contrary, no landlord and/or owner shall serve or cause the service of notice of levy upon an eviction, or otherwise enforce a residential eviction upon a resident of Boston…

A presentation for service prividers about RAFT/ERMA during COVID-19.

See this March 23, 2020 news release from FHA: Washington, D.C. – Today, to keep renters in multifamily properties in their home and to support multifamily property owners during the coronavirus national emergency, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is announcing that Fannie Mae and…

The Boston Housing Authority has notified the Housing Court by letter of the following: The BHA's intent to "immediately suspend its filing and prosecution of all Housing Court cases and matters with respect to its non-essential eviction actions. We define non-essential cases to be nonpayment and…

Services, tech and policies to address the immigration crisis. This site profiles current initiatives to address the eviction crisis across the United States. It is aimed at policymakers, organizers, researchers, and others who are interested in what communities around the U.S. are doing.…

Every year, the National Low Income Housing Coalition publishes the Advocates’ Guide to Housing and Community Development Policy to educate advocates of all kinds about the programs and policies that make housing affordable to low income people across America. Whether you are a new…

MADE is a free guided interview tool to help Massachusetts tenants defend against an eviction in court.  After using the online interview, an answer and other pleadings are generated that the tenant can then file in court. The tool also includes videos and educational links about…

Massachusetts Law Reform Institute (MLRI) has compiled information on the federal government shutdown and specifically what is happening to low income residents who receive or are applying for food assistance, health care, cash assistance benefits, unemployment insurance or housing. This…

A number of housing courts in Massachusetts have Lawyer for the Day programs where lawyers provide unrepresented tenants and landlords with assistance.  Volunteer lawyers help parties fill out forms and understand basic legal information. Often the Lawyer for the Day will be the only…

The Office of the Attorney General of Massachusetts issues this advisory to remind landlords and other housing providers that all tenants have a right to be free from harassment and intimidation.  See full advisory attached below. 

Information to assist persons displaced from Puerto Rico who are looking for affordable temporary or permanent housing in Massachusetts.  Also included below is a Housing Fact Sheet for Puerto Rican Families in English and Spanish.

Link to the 2017 edition of Legal Tactics: Tenants' Rights in Massachusetts. This handbook provides practical information about tenants' rights in private housing-housing that is owned by an individual or a privately owned company.  Click the "Go to Website" link below to read the book online (on…

Handout includes data from DHCD on the range of programs that it operates.

This handout, with commonly asked questions about housing, was produced by the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation.

Over the past 25 years, the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute has compiled four surveys of residential summary process (eviction) cases in Housing and District courts throughout Massachusetts. As policy makers consider legislation to expand the Housing Court Department statewide and other…

Lack of funding forces civil legal aid programs in Massachusetts to turn away 64% of eligible residents who seek their services for civil legal issues related to housing, employment, health care, education, family law and domestic violence, among others. Tens of thousands of low-income people must…

This Administrative Plan will govern the provision of RAFT (Residential Assistance for Families in Transition) assistance and will be incorporated into the contracts between DHCD and the RAFT Administering Agencies.

Housing Court Forms -- includes Summary Process, Small Claims, Supplementary Process, Civil Claims, Criminal Claims and General Use District Court Forms --

Prepared by the Court Personnel Working Group of the Supreme Judicial Court Steering Committee on Self-Represented Litigant This Guide provides court personnel with practical guidelines to help them provide effective assistance and useful information to court users. It sets forth guidelines…

Much has changed since the publication of the 2001 edition of the CSH Between the Lines Guide, as more communities have embraced permanent supportive housing as the model for reducing homelessness among populations vulnerable to housing instability. The law has changed as well, often attempting to…

HUD website with information for renters, including fair housing rents, tips tenants should know, budgeting, and housing counseling. See also HUD's Common Questions about Renting page.

Link to the 2009 edition of Legal Tactics: Finding Public and Subsidized housing. This handbook provides information about the nuts and bolts of government-funded housing programs in Massachusetts.  It includes information about: How to apply and waiting lists Immigrants and special…

Results of a 2005 survey bt Mass. Law Reform Institute analysing summary process eviction cases in 7 courts in Massachusetts. The survey analyzed: + How fast courts are processing eviction cases; + To what extent parties are represented by lawyers; and +What the outcomes are.