I am not a renter, and I don’t own any rental properties, so rent control won’t impact me, right?

Rent control will impact everyone – not just rent controlled units. Rent control has proven to lower property values, which results in lower municipal tax revenue. Remember, we have been here before. Massachusetts had rent control for nearly 25 years, until the voters repealed it in 1994. MIT researchers published a study on how the end of rent control impacted Cambridge. They found that the end of rent control increased property values in Cambridge by $2.0 billion over ten years, with the majority of that increase attributed to non-controlled homes, highlighting how rent control artificially held down the value of even exempt units. If rent control passes, every Massachusetts resident, even those with no connection to rental housing, will feel the impact. 

If rent control passes, how will it impact property taxes in my community?

Property taxes on single family homes and condos will increase. In Portland, ME, which adopted rent control in 2020, a study found that Portland’s total taxable property valuation has been reduced between 3.2-5.4% due to rent control. The study also found that 63% of that reduction fell to single-family and condo owners- meaning rent control has raised the municipal tax burden on single family and condominium owners in Portland. We have already seen how the falling values of office buildings have increased property taxes on home and condo owners in Boston and elsewhere. Rent control will further increase the tax burden on homeowners or lead to significant cuts in local services – that means less money for essential services like school teachers, police, fire, and road maintenance

I live in a small town in Central Mass and we only have a handful of rental properties in our town. Can we opt out?

No. Communities are not allowed to opt-out of this measure, even if local residents vote against it. This ballot question applies statewide and would apply the exact same rules and regulations to all 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts, regardless of size or the number of rental units. Even communities with minimal rental housing would still be subject to the law. 

Didn’t Massachusetts already have rent control?

Yes. Massachusetts had a previous policy which allowed cities to enact their own version of rent control. By 1994, when voters repealed the policy statewide, only Boston, Cambridge, and Brookline still had rent control policies. Following repeal, those communities experienced an increase in property values and saw an uptick in housing construction and improved housing quality. 

How will this impact housing prices in Massachusetts?

Cities across the country with rent control have seen declines in property values and reduced housing production. Over time, this greatly reduces housing supply and puts pressure on housing prices, making housing less affordable for everyone – renters and homeowners alike. Places where development has been allowed to occur without the influence of rent control, like Austin, TX, are actually seeing declines in rent.

Governor Maura Healey has also warned that rent control can discourage investment in housing, and other jurisdictions have in fact seen this occur. The best way to address the housing crisis is to build more housing, but we know from experience in other cities that investors avoid rent-controlled markets and fewer new units are built. Reduced overall production increases competition for new housing, which can drive up the price of new construction and market-rate units as demand outpaces supply. Many places in Massachusetts already have a housing shortage; rent control will only exacerbate it.

I own a small Cape house that I rent out on Airbnb during the summer, but in the offseason, I rent it to a teacher in the Cape schools. Am I exempt?

Units rented out for more than 13 days could be subject to this proposal. If you Airbnb your house weekly during the summer, but then rent it seasonally, your property could thereafter be rent controlled, and you will only be able to list it for the prorated amount of the monthly cap under the law. If you raise your Airbnb prices by more than CPI the following year, you could be liable for significant legal penalties under Massachusetts consumer protection laws. Notably, the entire burden for understanding the law, properly notifying renters, and following the law falls on the property owner.

I live on the South Shore but still own the three-decker in Dorchester where I grew up, and I rent it out for extra income. Am I exempt?

Unless your three-decker is owner-occupied, you are not exempt.  

My husband and I moved to Needham last year, but we still own our condo in the city and rent it out. Am I exempt?

If the condominium is not occupied by you, it is subject to rent control. 

I don’t know much about rent control, but I heard they have it in New York City. If it works there, it will probably work here, right?

New York City currently has a rent stabilization ordinance that limits rent increases for buildings built before 1974 with six or more units. Under its rent control ordinance, New York City has experienced market distortion and housing misallocation. Additionally, tenants in rent-stabilized apartments are experiencing an increase in deferred maintenance and a decline in quality, as property owners and managers struggle with rising costs that greatly outpace any rent increase. Thousands of units in New York City currently sit vacant because property owners cannot afford to fix them up to keep them habitable; meanwhile, the shortage of housing in New York City remains acute.

It seems to me that our housing costs are high because we don’t have enough houses or apartments. How will rent control impact housing creation?

Rent control stifles the construction of new housing – effectively halting the primary path to addressing the housing crisis. In communities that have adopted rent control, new housing production has dramatically decreased. In Saint Paul, Minnesota, permits to build apartments fell 79% compared to the year prior. In Montgomery County, Maryland, new multifamily permits fell from 2,093 between January and August 2024 to just 84 during the same period in 2025. In Massachusetts, where we need to build 220,000 homes by 2035 to address our housing crisis, we simply cannot afford the damage that rent control would cause.

Can property owners get a waiver to make upgrades or renovations to a property?

This rent control ballot question provides no pathway for property owners to recover the costs of upgrades or renovations. In addition, rents do not reset to market rate when a tenant moves out. This limits owners’ ability to reinvest in their properties, discourages maintenance and improvements, and can lead to declining housing quality over time. As one rent control supporter told the media last year, “If [property owners] find themselves in a position where they can’t maintain their properties, they don’t really have an out except for basically condemning them…”

I have owned a six-unit building in Lowell for thirty years. One of my original tenants is still there, and I only charge her half what other tenants in the building pay. When she eventually moves out, can I raise the rent for the new tenant to match what the other tenants pay?

Under this ballot question, units do not reset to market rate in between tenants. The baseline rent for all properties is January 31, 2026, 10 months before voters decide on the ballot question. Any future rent increases would be capped based on that baseline, regardless of tenant turnover. In this example, if five of your tenants pay $2,200 per month, but the other pays just $1,200, there is no way for the rent on the lower priced unit to EVER catch up to the other units.

We need to do something to address the housing crisis, but I’m not sure this is the right idea. What else can we do to bring down the cost of housing?

Increasing production of both market rate and affordable homes of all types is the most proven and sustainable way to address the housing crisis. Policies that encourage transit-oriented development, streamline and modernize multifamily permitting, and reduce regulatory barriers allow more housing to be built where demand is highest. In Austin, TX where 10,000 new apartments have come online since 2022, rents fell 6% from 2023-2024.  In Phoenix, AZ where multi-family construction boomed post-pandemic, rents have fallen 4% year over year. Targeted rental assistance can help households most in need without impacting homeowners and other unrelated households. Together, these approaches expand supply, support affordability, and avoid the unintended consequences associated with rent control.