Section 8 Housing in Massachusetts
96,927 active Housing Choice Vouchers across 6 markets. Rent limits, housing authorities, waitlist status, and voucher rights for every metro in Massachusetts.
Can a landlord refuse Section 8 in Massachusetts?
No. Massachusetts law prohibits landlords from refusing a renter because they pay with a Section 8 voucher. That protection applies in Massachusetts. If you were turned away for having a voucher, that refusal may be illegal.
MGL Ch 151B §4(10)
Massachusetts General Laws Ch 151B §4(10) prohibits housing discrimination based on lawful source of income statewide. Enforcement by the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD).
View statute →Informational only, not legal advice. Laws change, so verify current status before acting on a rejection or making a leasing decision.
Local voucher discrimination laws in Massachusetts
Massachusetts protects voucher holders statewide. These cities and counties also have their own ordinance, which can add a local agency to complain to.
- BostonBoston Fair Housing Ordinance
- CambridgeCambridge Human Rights Ordinance
- SomervilleSomerville Human Rights Ordinance
Source: PRRAC, Appendix B: State, Local, and Federal Laws Barring Source of Income Discrimination (updated March 2026), plus the ordinances linked above. Informational only, not legal advice.
Landlord and investor tools for Massachusetts
RentalCalcsFree calculators and guides from RentalCalcs, built by the VoucherMatch team, for landlords deciding whether to accept vouchers.
- Section 8 rent analyzerHUD rent benchmarks and modeled comparisons for Massachusetts ZIP codes. Confirm adopted amounts with the agency.
- Compare HUD benchmarks with market rent in MassachusettsExplore modeled ZIP comparisons; these do not establish an approved rent or agency payment.
- Average rent in MassachusettsMarket rent versus HUD fair market rent by city and bedroom count.
- How Section 8 rent is calculatedFair market rent, payment standards and rent reasonableness, step by step.
- Section 8 landlord math for 2026What the payment standard changes mean for cash flow this year.
Massachusetts metro guides
In-depth, source-cited guides: waitlist status, voucher-friendly neighborhoods, and who to call if you are turned away.
All Section 8 markets in Massachusetts
Sorted by active voucher count. Each metro page has HUD Fair Market Rent by bedroom, the housing authorities that administer vouchers there, and waitlist status.
Boston, MA
Metropolitan Statistical Area · CBSA 14460
79,898 vouchersSpringfield, MA
Metropolitan Statistical Area · CBSA 44140
6,747 vouchersWorcester, MA
Metropolitan Statistical Area · CBSA 49340
5,880 vouchersBarnstable Town, MA
Metropolitan Statistical Area · CBSA 12700
1,759 vouchersAmherst Town, MA
Metropolitan Statistical Area · CBSA 11200
1,409 vouchersPittsfield, MA
Metropolitan Statistical Area · CBSA 38340
1,234 vouchers
Section 8 by county in Massachusetts
County pages show the local voucher count, housing authorities, and metro rollup. Useful when you are looking at a specific address.
- Suffolk County41,917 vouchers
- Middlesex County19,022 vouchers
- Essex County7,828 vouchers
- Hampden County6,747 vouchers
- Bristol County6,324 vouchers
- Norfolk County5,996 vouchers
- Worcester County5,880 vouchers
- Plymouth County3,148 vouchers
- Barnstable County1,759 vouchers
- Hampshire County1,409 vouchers
- Berkshire County1,234 vouchers
- Franklin County1,127 vouchers
- Dukes County
- Nantucket County
Section 8 in Massachusetts: common questions
- Can a landlord refuse Section 8 in Massachusetts?
- No. Massachusetts law prohibits landlords from refusing a renter because they pay with a Section 8 voucher. That protection applies in Massachusetts. If you were turned away for having a voucher, that refusal may be illegal.
- Which Massachusetts cities and counties have their own voucher discrimination law?
- Boston, Cambridge and Somerville have a local source-of-income ordinance on file. The ordinance and its citation are listed on this page.
- How many Section 8 vouchers are there in Massachusetts?
- HUD data shows about 96,927 Housing Choice Vouchers across the 6 Massachusetts markets we track, administered by 130 housing authorities statewide.
- How do I apply for Section 8 in Massachusetts?
- You apply to a local housing authority, not to the state or to HUD. Each of Massachusetts's housing authorities runs its own waitlist and opens it on its own schedule, and applying is always free. Pick your metro or county on this page to see the housing authorities that serve it and their current waitlist status.
Find Section 8 apartments in Massachusetts
VoucherMatch connects voucher holders with landlords who accept Section 8, and it is free for renters. The administering housing authority must approve the actual unit, rent and household assistance calculation.