Eviction Legal and Financial Resources

Massachusetts Eviction and Pet-related Resources

Legal, informational, and pet resources geared toward people facing eviction

Learn more about rental assistance program on the state’s website. Learn more about policy and housing issues on our website.

There are some programs in place to help tenants with eviction proceedings. It is also important for tenants with pets to know their rights when facing eviction proceedings. 

This page compiles information and resources to help tenants understand the eviction process, respond to eviction notices, and find additional assistance and/or legal representation, with the ultimate goal of keeping more people and pets in their homes. Please note that this list may not be exhaustive and there may be additional organizations and resources in your community that may offer services and assistance.

LEGAL RESOURCES
FINANCIAL RESOURCES RELATED TO HOUSING AND EVICTION
ABOUT THE EVICTION PROCESS

LEGAL RESOURCES
The following organizations, agencies, and forms may be able to help you if you are facing an eviction

The Massachusetts COVID Eviction Legal Help Program (CELHP) 

• https://www.evictionlegalhelp.org/ 
• The Massachusetts COVID Eviction Legal Help program gives free legal help to low income tenants and owner-occupants living in 2- or 3-family houses in Massachusetts.
• CELHP will provide advice, referrals, legal information, and legal representation. A lawyer can help advise you about your case, fill out court papers, respond to deadlines, and prepare your case for court.
• If you are eligible for CEHLP you will get legal help in Housing Court. Some programs may also be able to help if you are in District Court or if you are at risk of losing your housing subsidy before or during court.

Massachusetts Housing Court Department
Information on the court process and assistance programs

Mass Legal Help

• https://www.masslegalhelp.org/housing/lt1-pullout-12-evictions
• Know the steps required of landlords to evict tenants
• https://www.masslegalhelp.org/housing/lt1-booklet-10-negotiating
• Learn how to negotiate a settlement (with video)

Massachusetts state website

• https://www.mass.gov/info-details/massachusetts-law-about-eviction
  Links to legal tactics, eviction laws, and COVID updates
  Links to specific Massachusetts laws, regulations, and court rules
  Links to court forms
• https://www.mass.gov/covid-19-getting-help-with-housing-costs
  Resources for Renters, Homeowners, and Landlords

Mass. Department of Housing and Community Development
Learn about receiving a notice to quit (English) and (Spanish)

Mass Legal Services

• https://www.masslegalservices.org/findlegalaid
• The resource finder allows you to search your specific conditions to find helpful resources
• Go to the housing section and enter your information
• It will give specific service centers and law offices with the ability to help, varying on the situation and center

Boston’s Office of Housing Stability
https://www.boston.gov/departments/neighborhood-development/office-housing-stability

Metrowest Legal Services

• https://mwlegal.org/work/housing
• Clinics for tenants facing eviction MONDAYS ONLY 9:30am – 12:30pm
• Eviction process and timeline outlines
• Provides all court forms and assistance to fill them out

Massachusetts Defense for Eviction (MADE)

• https://www.gbls.org/MADE
• Free legal interview 
• Ensure proper eviction response
• Need the summons and complaint, notice to quit or notice to terminate tenancy, and access to a printer

Harvard Mattapan Initiative

• https://legalservicescenter.org/get-legal-help/housing-law-unit/mattapan-initiative/
• Free legal services to tenants and homeowners facing eviction/foreclosure by banks or landlords
• Will give guidance and assistance with legal rights, undertake affirmative litigation, works to keep individuals in their homes or relocate them with proper resources
• Serves primarily the Mattapan area
• Offers free “know your rights” videos that should be applicable to all Massachusetts residents

Greater Boston Legal Services

• https://www.gbls.org/get-legal-help
• Work with civil legal issues
• Represent clients in court, offer advice, and help with paperwork
• Work individually and with community organizations
• Special focus on impact litigation (cases intended to affect societal change)

De Novo Center for Justice and Healing

• www.denovo.org
  
• De Novo provides free civil legal assistance and affordable psychological counseling to low-income people. Cambridge, Boston, and interior suburbs.

City Life/Vida Urbana

• http://www.clvu.org/covid19
• Metro Boston area
  
• Housing hotline: 617-934-5006 (English); 617-397-3773 (Spanish)

Northeast Legal Aid

• https://www.northeastlegalaid.org
  
• NLA offers free civil legal services to low income and elderly individuals and families in northeast Massachusetts.
• NLA has full-service offices in Lynn, Lowell and Lawrence, Massachusetts.
• NLA has an outreach office in Haverhill, Massachusetts with limited hours.

Community Legal Aid

• https://communitylegal.org/
  
• Provides free civil legal services to low-income and elderly residents of Central and Western Massachusetts.

South Coastal Counties Legal Services, Inc.

• www.sccls.org
  
• A nonprofit corporation that provides free civil legal services to low income families, elders, victims of crime, and people with disabilities in our communities (Barnstable, Bristol, Dukes, Nantucket, and Plymouth Counties and the Towns of Avon and Stoughton in Norfolk County). 

Tenancy Preservation Program (TPP)

• https://www.mass.gov/info-details/tenancy-preservation-program
• Works with eviction due to behaviors from a disability
• Works as a third party consultant to discuss accommodation with landlord and tenants
• Specifically for people with disabilities

American Bar Association Find Legal Help/Find a Lawyer Lawyers.com

• FindLegalhelp.org

Boston Bar Association Volunteer Lawyers Project

• https://vlpnet.org/
• Dedicated to serving families and individuals in the Greater Boston Area from lower income households.
• Represents US citizens, green card holders, and certain legal immigrants

Massachusetts Bar Association’s Monthly Dial-A-Lawyer Program

• This program encourages members of the public to call with their legal problems and questions.
• This program was created in order to assist the people of Massachusetts who have fallen through the cracks of the legal and criminal justice system.
• To use Dial-A-Lawyer, call (617) 338-0610 or (877) 686-0711 on the first Wednesday of the month between 5:30 and 7:30 p.m.

FINANCIAL RESOURCES RELATED TO HOUSING AND EVICTION

Residential Assistance for Families in Transition (RAFT)

• https://www.mass.gov/service-details/learn-about-residential-assistance-for-families-in-transition-raft
• Short-term financial assistance for families who are homeless or who are at risk
• You can only be approved in the region where you plan to use your RAFT assistance. To find a regional agency, call 1-800-224-5124 or visit the site above.

Emergency Rental and Mortgage Assistance (ERMA) program

• Statewide fund provides direct funding to eligible households who have suffered financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic and State of Emergency.
• ERMA can provide rental and mortgage assistance to low-income households who have been impacted by the crisis and may not be eligible for traditional or COVID-19 RAFT.
• This program is available for households within the 50-80% range of Area Median Income (AMI). Like the RAFT program, ERMA may provide up to $4,000 for eligible households to assist with rent or mortgage arrears accrued after April 1, 2020 and/or with upcoming rent or mortgage payments.
• Households can look at regional income levels to assess their eligibility, which can be found below.
• We encourage households who think they may be eligible to reach out to the eleven agencies that administer ERMA and RAFT on the state’s behalf, this includes our nine Housing Consumer Education Centers, as well as LHAND and the Central Massachusetts Housing Alliance.

Lawrence Rental Assistance

• https://www.wearelawrence.org/coronavirus-financialassistance
• Financial assistance for families and individuals struggling to pay rent during COVID
• ACT Lawrence: 978-685-6274
• Lawrence CommunityWorks: 978-685-3115

Just Shelter

• www.justshelter.org/community-resources
• Go to Massachusetts on the drop-down menu to find organizations working on affordable housing, to prevent eviction and reduce family homelessness.

ABOUT THE EVICTION PROCESS

In Massachusetts, a landlord may only force tenants to move, or evict them, if the landlord has first obtained permission from a court to do so. A landlord must follow the proper legal process in order to evict tenants — in other words, landlords cannot just change the locks, remove a tenant’s belongings, or resort to harassment or intimidation. 

The landlord must provide the tenant with a “Notice to Quit,” which tells you to leave in a certain number of days. As a tenant, it is important to understand that you do not have to leave by the date on the Notice to Quit, but you do need to respond to the eviction proceedings. 

A summary of the eviction process in Massachusetts can be found in the state’s website here. This website (Mass Legal Help) provides helpful information and links to resources for those facing eviction. For a full explanation of the eviction process, this chapter from the Eighth Edition of Legal Tactics: Tenants’ Rights in Massachusetts (May 2017) covers it well.

This state resource provides an explanation of what to expect when you go to court. Eviction self-help forms and sample letters are available at Mass Legal Help here.

You can use this search tool on Mass Legal Services to find legal assistance.

The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office, Landlord and Tenant Law created a website containing basic information concerning lease terms, state sanitary requirements and other rules regarding housing discrimination and eviction proceedings.