Low Income Apartments and Affordable Housing For Rent in Massachusetts, MA

Discover affordable housing in Massachusetts where there are 750+ housing opportunities based on income and household needs like accessible units for seniors or persons with disabilities. Find and apply to these low income apartments now.

Oliver Lofts

166 Terrace Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02120

Parmelee Court Homes

1782 Washington Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02118

Tammy Brook Apartments

155 King Ave, Weymouth, Massachusetts 02188

Parkway Heights

201 Chelsea Street, Everett, Massachusetts 02149

Edmands House

15 Edmands Rd, Framingham, Massachusetts 01701

Langham Court

26 Worcester Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02118

Mansfield Meadows Apartments

9 Bonney Lane, Mansfield, Massachusetts 02048

Bancroft

2010 Columbus Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02119

Whitman Woods

One Longfellow Lane, Tyngsborough, Massachusetts 1879

Canal Lofts

48 Water Street, Worcester, Massachusetts 01604

Kendrigan Place

10 Winter Street, Quincy, Massachusetts 02169

Stratton Hill Park Apartments

161 W Mountain St, Worcester, Massachusetts 1606

Salem Heights

12 Pope St., Salem, Massachusetts 01970

Dudley Greenville Apartments

225 Dudley Street, Roxbury, Massachusetts 2119

Spring Gate Apartments

52 Hannah Way, Rockland, Massachusetts 02370

Canterbury Towers

6 Wachusett Street , Worcester, Massachusetts 01609

Nazing Court

232 Seaver Street, Dorchester, Massachusetts 02121

Silver Leaf Terrace

30 Terrace Dr, Leominster, Massachusetts 01453

Brown School Residences

200 Lynn Street, Peabody, Massachusetts 01960

Loft Five50 l & ll

550 Broadway, Lawrence, Massachusetts 01841

The Hourly Wage Needed to Afford A Safe, Modest 2 Bed Apartment In Massachusetts
$53.54/hour
$38.54 (+257%) more than Massachusetts minimum wage and $46.29 (+639%) more than the Federal minimum wage.
Learn More About Massachusetts Affordable Housing ↓

How many renters live in Massachusetts?

The State of Massachusetts has 766,381 people living in 330,101 households.

There are 434,679 renters living in 210,982 renter households in this State. Renters make up 56.72 percent of the population living in Massachusetts.

What is the rental market like in Massachusetts?

There are an estimated 357,351 housing units in the Massachusetts area. Of these, 222,668 units are rental homes, making up 62 percent of the housing market. For every renter household in Massachusetts, there are 1 rental units.

What is the vacancy rate for rentals in Massachusetts?

The rental vacancy rate in Massachusetts is 4 percent. This is a lower than average vacancy rate. When rental vacancy rates are low there are fewer available units. Rents tend to be higher as more people compete for scarce housing.

How many rental units are in Massachusetts for each bedroom size?

Occupied Rental Units by Size in Massachusetts
Studio One-Bedroom Two-Bedroom Three-Bedroom Four+ Bedrooms
21,143 64,332 71,615 40,990 10,213
Occupied Rental Units by Size in Massachusetts

A large number of apartments in Massachusetts have two or fewer bedrooms. Seniors and young professionals especially may have more success finding an apartment that meets their needs.

How many renter households in Massachusetts are overburdened by housing costs?

Among renter households in this market, 51 percent have housing cost burden. Further, 25 percent of households are extremely rent overburdened. When renters pay too much for their housing, it leaves little money for other necessities like food, clothes, or medicine.

The federal government says that renters are cost-burdened if they pay more than a third of their monthly income for rent and utilities.

How many units are rented at Fair Market Rent (FMR) in Massachusetts?

Renters with a Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher must select a home that is at or below the area’s Fair Market Rent. Markets with a large share of units above FMR tend to have longer search times to find a qualified unit, while those with a large share of units below FMR tend to have more choices and shorter search times. The share below FMR can vary by size of unit, as shown in the table below.

These are the approximate number of units renting below the FMR in this market:

Unit Size Count of Units Below FMR Percentage of Total Units Below FMR
Studio 7,479 35 percent
One BR 23,014 36 percent
Two BR 24,854 35 percent
Rental Units Below FMR in Massachusetts

How many affordable rental units are in Massachusetts?

There are a variety of federal affordable housing programs serving households in Massachusetts including the following:

Federal Program Unit Count
Low Income Housing Tax Credit 21,312
Public Housing 8,654
Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance 21,937
Mod Rehab Project-Based Rental Assistance 453
Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly 1,438
Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities 223
Tracked Units by Federal Program in Massachusetts

Rental units may be funded in part by multiple federal programs.

Income Based Apartments in Massachusetts

Massachusetts features 102,738 income based apartments. Tenants of income based apartments typically pay no more than 30% of their income towards rent and utilities.

Low Rent Apartments in Massachusetts

There are 39,537 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Massachusetts.

Housing Choice Vouchers in Massachusetts

On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay Massachusetts landlords $1,000 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $400 towards rent in Massachusetts.

The maximum amount a voucher would pay on behalf of a low-income tenant in Massachusetts for a two-bedroom apartment is between $2,544 and $3,110.

Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.