With an eye on New York City voters who favored housing affordability in this month’s mayoral election, Massachusetts housing advocates are optimistic they can win at the ballot box next year with statewide rent control.
The coalition group Homes for All Massachusetts collected more than enough signatures to place a local option rent control measure on next year’s ballot. Real estate groups and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu oppose the initiative, setting up a potentially intense battle over the proposal.
Advancing a rent control ballot initiative signals that voter pressure is mounting for direct intervention in the housing affordability crisis, even in states with a history of rejecting such measures. The campaign’s rapid signature-gathering highlights urgent concerns about rent increases, displacement, and the broader challenge of maintaining economic diversity in communities.
Political boundaries around rent control are eroding amid rising costs nationwide. This trend could encourage voters and advocates in other states to pursue similar policies through direct democracy instead of legislative compromise. Such efforts may reshape housing affordability debates across the country.
The effects were evident in New York City this November, when voters elected Zohran Mamdani as mayor, mainly because of his focus on affordability in one of the nation’s priciest cities. Mamdani pledged to expand rent stabilization.
Massachusetts stands out as a case of how much can change in two years. The same coalition failed to gather enough signatures in 2023 to put a rent control referendum on the 2024 ballot.
“Everywhere we went, we heard about how high rents are displacing workers and seniors from our communities, forcing people to work multiple jobs just to pay the rent, and making it impossible for young families to save money to achieve the dream of owning a home,” the coalition said on social media about its recent win.
Battle lines are emerging
New York City landlords have filed a federal судебный процесс challenging a 2019 law that tightened rent stabilization. They argue the law is unconstitutional.
In Massachusetts, real estate interest groups immediately criticized the rent control referendum. The Greater Boston Real Estate Board, the Massachusetts Association of Realtors, and NAIOP Massachusetts issued a joint statement saying the measure would create the country’s most restrictive rent-control program.
“It will unquestionably make our housing crisis worse, and significantly reduce the supply of quality homes on the rental market,” they said.
Boston Mayor Wu supports rent stabilization but disagrees with the referendum’s language.
“I wish that the ballot initiative had been just a pure local option, repeal the ban on cities taking action and let each city do what they need to do,” Wu said on Boston Public Radio.
She agreed with the real estate community that the ballot measure is restrictive.
“We do need to be at the right balance between not chilling or preventing housing production while we are keeping people in their homes as we try to boost the supply and create more housing,” she added.
Like New York City, Boston has long struggled with housing affordability. Wu made it a central campaign issue in her 2021 mayoral run.
Massachusetts law currently bans rent control. However, in March 2023, Wu filed a petition with the state seeking a “home rule” exemption for rent stabilization. The legislature took no action on the exemption.
Bringing back past rent control that didn’t work
Massachusetts’ renewed push for rent control is reminiscent of laws enacted in the early 1970s in response to rising rents, which were phased out by the early 1990s because they proved ineffective.
During that period, developers and landlords converted apartments into condominiums or withdrew them from the rental market. Academic studies showed an 8% to 12% decline in rental units, with controlled properties valued 45-50% below similar uncontrolled buildings.
In New York City, tens of thousands—perhaps up to 100,000—units sit empty because of the stricter 2019 law. Landlords have been leaving these units vacant because they can’t raise rents enough for new tenants to cover costs. They argue that such restrictions amount to an unconstitutional taking.
Massachusetts focused on housing affordability
Massachusetts has addressed affordability with zoning reform, major funding increases, and transit-oriented development policies.
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Communities 2021 law requires 177 transit-served municipalities to zone at least one as-of-right multifamily district near stations. The minimum density is 15 units per acre. Eligibility for key state grants depends on compliance, which effectively legalizes transit-oriented density across much of Greater Boston.
The 2024 Affordable Homes Act dedicated over $5 billion to production, preservation, public housing repairs, and advances policy on accessory dwelling units, commercial-to-residential conversions, and mixed-income projects on surplus public land.
State transportation and housing agencies use joint-development strategies at MBTA stations to prioritize mixed-income projects. Advocacy and planning organizations encourage cities to combine this new capacity with inclusionary zoning and tenant protections. Their goal is to ensure that transit-led investment does not simply displace lower-income residents.
Boston operates under its own zoning system, requiring affordability in most midsize and larger projects through an inclusionary program. The city has raised set-aside rates and deepened area-median income targets. It is also systematically upzoning and reducing parking near rapid transit through its 2025 Housing Strategy and “complete neighborhoods” rezonings.
Policymakers, advocates, and voters face pivotal decisions as Massachusetts debates the future of rent control and broader housing reforms. The year ahead will test whether ballot measures, legislative action, or market forces can deliver sustainable affordability for residents.
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