By Ms. Jehlen, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 22) of Patricia D. Jehlen, Mike Connolly, Erika Uyterhoeven and Christine P. Barber (with approval of the mayor and city council) for legislation to authorize the city of Somerville to regulate rent in residential dwelling units. Housing. [Local Approval Received.]
By Representative Hong of Lowell, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 1526) of Tara T. Hong for an investigation by a special commission relative to rent stabilization. Housing.
This bill allows the Town of Athol to establish rent regulations and a rent board for manufactured housing parks (mobile home parks) within its borders. The rent board can adjust rents based on factors like property taxes, maintenance costs, and capital improvements, while requiring park owners to register park information under penalty of perjury. It also gives the rent board authority to regulate evictions, with its orders serving as a defense in eviction lawsuits. Violations of rent regulations carry fines up to $1,000. The bill applies exclusively to Athol and takes effect upon passage.
HD 829 protects eligible tenants (65+ or disabled, or with income at or below 80% of area median income) by allowing them to terminate leases early without penalty when moving to qualifying housing. Tenants must provide 30 days' written notice to landlords and can move to housing like nursing homes, public housing, or low-income developments without liability for the remaining lease term. Landlords cannot refuse rentals or housing assistance based on this termination, and lease clauses attempting to block this right are void. The law directly affects these specific tenant groups and their landlords, creating a clear mechanism for lease flexibility.
HD 1066 amends Massachusetts' industrial development finance authority (IDFA) laws to expand eligibility for financing. The key change (Section 3) adds rental housing - including low- and moderate-income housing under Chapter 40B - to the definition of "industrial enterprise," allowing IDFAs to finance such projects. This directly affects municipalities and developers seeking to use IDFA bonds for housing developments. The bill clarifies bond issuance authority (Section 4) and removes outdated references to "MIFA" and other administrative terms throughout the chapter. These changes streamline financing for housing projects under IDFA programs.
This bill creates a legal presumption that smoking occurred in non-smoking rental units if smoke detectors are removed, covered, or without power - unless the tenant proves otherwise through a third-party inspection. It directly affects landlords and tenants in properties with written no-smoking policies, requiring landlords to maintain working detectors and providing tenants a process to challenge false accusations. Key mechanisms include mandating municipal inspections within 3 business days (with a fee), allowing landlords to prove detector presence via photos or signed inventories, and awarding attorney fees to winning parties. The law explicitly prevents such cases from being treated as nonpayment disputes and protects tenants harmed by detector removal.
This bill establishes clear requirements for addressing pest infestations in rental housing. Tenants must provide written notice of infestations and allow landlords or licensed pest control professionals access (with 24-hour notice) to inspect and treat the unit. Landlords must inspect within 5 business days of notice, hire a certified pest control professional within 10 days, and complete treatments until the infestation is controlled, with a final inspection required 30 days after treatment. Landlords cannot be held liable for infestations if they comply with these steps, and they must verify units are pest-free before leasing new tenants.
This bill increases the deleading credit for rental property owners from $3,000 to $15,000 under Section 6(e) of Chapter 62. It directly affects rental property owners who remediate lead paint hazards in their units. The key provision is a simple monetary adjustment to the existing credit amount, making the remediation cost more affordable. The change applies to all qualifying rental housing units requiring lead paint removal. This is a straightforward funding adjustment with no additional requirements or new mechanisms.
HD 3016 requires Massachusetts to fund supportive care services for low-income seniors aged 55+ living in qualifying rental housing projects. It mandates the Executive Office of Health and Human Services to pay housing sponsors $2,500 annually per MassHealth enrollee residing in projects with at least 50 units, where MassHealth residents are the majority and cluster contracting with homecare agencies is in place. The law also requires annual reports to the legislature tracking the number of Medicaid recipients in these projects and cost savings from the cluster contracting model. This directly affects qualifying senior housing projects and their residents enrolled in MassHealth.
HD 2226 prohibits real estate landlords and their agents from using third-party services that algorithmically set rents or coordinate rent increases among landlords. It bans service providers from collecting rental data, analyzing it with algorithms, or recommending pricing terms to landlords, and prevents them from facilitating non-competition agreements between landlords. Violations are treated as unfair competition under existing antitrust laws, allowing tenants to pursue class-action lawsuits in court instead of being forced into arbitration. Successful plaintiffs can recover damages, interest, and legal costs, with the law explicitly invalidating pre-dispute arbitration agreements for these cases.
