Low Income Apartments and Affordable Housing For Rent in Suffolk County, MA

Discover affordable housing in Suffolk County where there are 382+ 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.

Orchard Gardens Phase III - Hope VI

25 Ambrose St, Boston, Massachusetts 02119

Roxbury Tenants

44 Francis St, Boston, Massachusetts 02115

Concord Street Elderly

1640 Washington St, Boston, Massachusetts 02118

Parker Hill Apartments

170 Parker Hill Ave, Boston, Massachusetts 02120

Washington Columbia II

50 Columbia Rd, Boston, Massachusetts 02121

Interfaith Housing

564 Massachusetts Ave, Boston, Massachusetts 02118

Wait Street

768 Huntington Ave, Boston, Massachusetts 02120

Viviendas Associates

50 W Dedham St, Boston, Massachusetts 02118

Morville House

100 Norway St, Boston, Massachusetts 02115

Bradstreet Community Residence

229 Bradstreet Ave, Revere, Massachusetts 02151

Proctor Avenue Residence

25 Proctor Ave, Revere, Massachusetts 02151

Mission Park

835 Huntington Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02115

West End Place Lowell Square

150 Staniford St, Boston, Massachusetts 02114

Longfellow House

885 South St, Boston, Massachusetts 02131

Senior Living on Bellingham Hill

100 Bellingham St, Chelsea, Massachusetts 02150

Camfield Gardens

85 Lenox St, Boston, Massachusetts 02118

Brownstone Apartments

163 W Springfield St, Boston, Massachusetts 02118

Grant Manor

1812 Washington St, Boston, Massachusetts 02118

Roslindale School

120 Poplar St, Boston, Massachusetts 02131

Mcbride House

74 Queensberry St, Boston, Massachusetts 02215

Open Until Further Notice

Reported On February 23rd, 2024 by Nathan Brunet

The Hourly Wage Needed to Afford A Safe, Modest 2 Bed Apartment In Suffolk County, 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 Suffolk County, Massachusetts Affordable Housing ↓

What HUD offices serve Suffolk County, Massachusetts?

Public Housing Agencies operate federally assisted affordable housing programs at local levels on behalf of HUD. Notably, housing agencies are responsible for managing Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher, Public Housing, and Project-Based Voucher waiting lists within their jurisdiction.

Operates the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV), Moving to Work programs for Suffolk County, Massachusetts.

Go to the Massachusetts Public Housing and Low-Income Apartments Waiting Lists page for openings near Suffolk County.

How many renters live in Suffolk County, Massachusetts?

The County of Suffolk County has 766,381 people living in 330,101 households.

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

What is the rental market like in Suffolk County, Massachusetts?

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

What is the vacancy rate for rentals in Suffolk County?

The rental vacancy rate in Suffolk County 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 Suffolk County for each bedroom size?

Occupied Rental Units by Size in Suffolk County
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 Suffolk County

A large number of apartments in Suffolk County 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 Suffolk County 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 Much Is Rent in Suffolk County

Depending on size, the Fair Market Rent - HUDs measurement of the cost of an average housing unit - ranges from $2,212 to $3,765. FMRs are updated annually by HUD for every city and county nationwide.

Bed Size 2024 Fair Market Rents
Studio $2,212
One BR $2,377
Two BR $2,827
Three BR $3,418
Four BR $3,765
2024 Fair Market Rents in Suffolk County, Massachusetts

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

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 Suffolk County, Massachusetts

How many affordable rental units are in Suffolk County?

There are a variety of federal affordable housing programs serving households in Suffolk County, 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 Suffolk County, Massachusetts

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

Income Based Apartments in Suffolk County, Massachusetts

Suffolk County features 23,964 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 Suffolk County, Massachusetts

There are 8,164 rent subsidized apartments that do not provide direct rental assistance but remain affordable to low income households in Suffolk County.

Housing Choice Vouchers in Suffolk County, Massachusetts

On average, Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers pay Suffolk County landlords $1,200 per month towards rent. The average voucher holder contributes $500 towards rent in Suffolk County.

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

Sourced from federal housing data and AffordableHousingOnline.com research.