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Here’s a comprehensive overview of Massachusetts rental laws as of 2025, including recent updates and long-standing regulations that affect both tenants and landlords:
🔹 Key 2025 Rental Law Changes
Effective August 1, 2025, Massachusetts passed Bill H.336, which introduces major reforms:
- Broker Fees:
- ONLY the party who hires the broker (tenant or landlord) is responsible for paying the fee.
- Tenants are no longer automatically required to pay broker fees unless they voluntarily hired the broker themselves.
- Dual Agency Ban:
- Real estate agents cannot represent both the landlord and tenant in the same transaction to avoid conflicts of interest.
- Lease Signing Timeline:
- Leases cannot be signed more than 3 months before the lease start date or the end of the current lease.
- This limits early lease lock-ins, especially in cities like Boston where early leasing was common
1. https://www.centrerealtygroup.com/massachusetts-rental-law-2025-tenant-landlord-guide/
🔹 General Landlord-Tenant Laws in Massachusetts
🏠 Landlord Responsibilities
- Provide a habitable dwelling (heat, hot water, pest control, smoke/CO detectors, etc.).
- Make repairs within 14 days of written notice.
- Maintain compliance with the State Sanitary Code (105 CMR 410).
👤 Tenant Responsibilities
- Pay rent on time.
- Keep the unit clean and sanitary.
- Avoid disturbing neighbors or damaging the property
2. https://ipropertymanagement.com/laws/massachusetts-landlord-tenant-rights
🔹 Security Deposits
- Maximum: One month’s rent.
- Must be held in an interest-bearing account.
- Landlords must provide:
- A receipt
- A condition statement within 10 days of move-in.
- Must return the deposit within 30 days of lease end, minus allowable deductions (e.g., unpaid rent, damages)
2. https://ipropertymanagement.com/laws/massachusetts-landlord-tenant-rights
🔹 Evictions
- 14-Day Notice for nonpayment of rent.
- 7-Day Notice for lease violations.
- 30-Day Notice for no-cause or end-of-lease evictions.
- Retaliatory or discriminatory evictions are illegal.
🔹 Rent Increases
- No statewide rent control (except in Cambridge).
- Landlords can raise rent by any amount with 30 days’ notice (or longer, depending on rent payment frequency).
- Increases cannot be retaliatory or discriminatory
2. https://ipropertymanagement.com/laws/massachusetts-landlord-tenant-rights
🔹 Landlord Entry
- Must give reasonable notice (typically 48 hours) for repairs or inspections.
- Entry allowed for:
- Maintenance
- Showings
- Emergencies
- Court orders
CheatSHeet For New Rental Law Effective August 1, 2025
Can Tenant Go Directly To Listing Agent And Avoid Paying Broker Fee?
Yes, a tenant in Massachusetts can go directly to the listing agent and apply for a rental unit without being represented by their own agent — but there are important legal boundaries and protections in place as of August 1, 2025, under the new rental law (Bill H.336):
✅ What Tenants Can Do
- Contact the listing agent directly (e.g., via Zillow, Instagram, or a brokerage site).
- Tour the property and fill out paperwork without hiring their own agent.
- Not be charged a broker fee if the listing agent was hired by the landlord.
⚠️ What Listing Agents Can and Cannot Do
- They must disclose in writing:
- Who hired them (usually the landlord).
- Who is paying their fee.
- The amount of the fee.
- They cannot charge the tenant unless the tenant explicitly hired them to represent their interests.
- Dual agency is banned — the same agent cannot represent both the landlord and the tenant in the same transaction
3. https://www.centrerealtygroup.com/massachusetts-rental-law-2025-tenant-landlord-guide/
📝 Example Scenario
If a tenant sees a listing on Zillow and contacts the agent listed:
- That agent is likely representing the landlord.
- The tenant can proceed unrepresented.
- The agent must not charge the tenant a broker fee.
- The tenant can still negotiate, apply, and sign the lease directly.
🏢 What About Apartment Referral Services & Third-Party Platforms?
These include services like:
- Zillow, Apartments.com, Rent.com
- Local referral agencies or apartment matchmakers
✅ What the Law Says
- Broker fees can only be charged to the party who hired the broker.
- If the landlord hired the referral service or listing agent, the landlord pays.
- If the tenant voluntarily hires a broker or referral service to help them find an apartment, the tenant pays
2. https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/broker-fee-laws-massachusetts-renters-takes-effect/
- Dual agency is banned — even if the referral service tries to represent both sides, it’s no longer legal.
- Written disclosure is required:
- Tenants must be told who hired the agent, who pays the fee, and how much — before signing anything.
⚠️ Important for Tenants Using Referral Services
- If you’re just browsing listings or contacting a listing agent directly, you are not hiring the broker.
- You should not be charged a fee unless you explicitly agree to work with a referral agent.
- Always ask:
- “Who hired you?”
- “Will I be charged a fee?”
- “Can I see the written disclosure?”
This law change will reshape and affect rental cyclesaccross the state and especially in Boston area where the housing market relies on being in a predictable cycle, i.e., many leases start with a September 1 move-in date when the student population is at its highest peak. Although, these rules are aimed to help tenants with their upfront costs, many of the tenants may end up going unrepresented since they will directly go to the listing agent to avoid paying the broker fee and achieve a saving there. The shortened lead time and the new limited broker role will have some consequences for the livelilhood of those agents relying on tenant paid compensation. Time will tell. In addition, this law will help reduce some of the high-pressure leasing tactics used by landlords given that leases can’t be signed way in advance, plus it will limit some of the early lock-in lease date; especially in the heavy student populated Boston area. It is possible that the rents may even go higher since the landlords will increase the rent to offset this additional broker fee cost and end up passing the cost to the tenant indirectly.
Let’s connect. I can help navigate you through the rental journey.
