An Act relative to a local option real estate transfer fee to create and preserve housing

This bill allows Massachusetts cities and towns to voluntarily charge a fee on the sale of multi-family homes to raise money for affordable housing. Local governments that choose to adopt this fee would collect a percentage of the sale price from buyers and sellers, which must then be used exclusively to create, preserve, or adapt existing affordable housing units. The law defines specific terms for what counts as affordable housing and outlines how settlement agents must report and pay these fees to local housing funds. Ultimately, the legislation gives municipalities the option to generate their own funding for housing preservation while ensuring those funds are restricted to affordable housing projects.