Owner Occupied Landlord Rights in Massachusetts

Owning a multifamily property can be lucrative, but you still need a place to live. When a property owner resides in the building he also rents to others, this is legally known as an owner-occupied property. Owner-occupied landlords must follow general Massachusetts landlord-tenant laws, but a select group may be exempt from the federal Fair Housing Act.

Whether you live in a property or you don’t, if you have renters, you’re subject to Massachusetts landlord-tenant laws. Those include having everything documented in writing in a signed lease and following all state laws regarding late payments on rent and security deposits. You also must provide a habitable living space in good condition and avoid retaliatory action if a renter reports a violation.

Most owner-occupied rental regulations fall under state laws regarding rentals in general. However, if you rent only one unit and live in the other, you aren’t subject to the restrictions of the Fair Housing Act. You’ll need to pay close attention to laws that apply more heavily to landlords living in the same building as owners, including the right to enter without notice and the renter’s right to quiet enjoyment of the space.

Under the Fair Housing Act, landlords and property owners cannot discriminate against renters on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status or disability. Federal law exempts owner-occupied units as long as the property has four units or fewer, with the owner occupying one of those units. But in Massachusetts, that exemption is limited to two-family homes where the owner occupies one of the units.

No matter how many units you rent, though, owner-occupied rental laws do not exempt advertising your for-rent spaces. You cannot publish or print any statement that discriminates on the basis of any protected class. You’ll also have to follow the provisions of the Civil Rights Act of 1966, which prohibits any discrimination based on race when renting or selling property.

Screening tenants is an important part of making sure you’re getting a reliable renter, but you have to follow laws when you’re doing so. Under landlord laws, Massachusetts tenants can’t run a background check on potential renters unless they’ve signed a consent form. Make this part of your application packet and decline any applicant who refuses to sign.

To protect yourself as a landlord, you should also have a screening process that’s fully defined in writing. If you have a policy, such as no pets allowed, this should be enforced uniformly to avoid being reported for discrimination. If you have specific criteria, such as income or length of employment, this minimum should also be spelled out in writing.

Massachusetts owner-occupied landlord rights follow general landlord-tenant laws when it comes to handling security deposits. First, it’s important to know that you can’t collect an application fee from potential renters, so scratch that off your application if you’ve included it. You can, however, collect a security deposit, as long as you limit it to no more than the equivalent of one month of rent.

At the time the security deposit is paid, you’re also required under Massachusetts law to issue a receipt with the amount, the date and the name of the payer and payee. Within 30 days of receipt, you must let the tenant know the name of the bank where the deposit is being held, along with the account number and amount of the deposit. Each year, you must pay 5-percent interest on that deposit to the tenant and the entire deposit must be returned, including interest due, within 30 days of the lease’s termination.

Ideally, you’ll never have a tenant who fails to pay rent on time. But chances are, you’ll deal with that eventually. Owner-occupied landlords must follow all state regulations regarding late fees and nonpayment eviction procedures. Under landlord laws, Massachusetts allows you to charge a late fee, including interest on the amount due, once rent is at least 30 days late.

Massachusetts law also places restrictions on rent increases. If you’re upping the rent, it must be applied in a nondiscriminatory manner and you cannot increase it until the lease is up. When a renter doesn’t pay for an extended period, you must give renters 14 days’ notice to leave the property. If rent isn’t paid and the renter remains, you can file for eviction.

When a landlord is living in a property for rent, right-to-enter laws are especially important. Even if your property is divided with separate entrances, you’re more likely to need to enter the rental unit if you’re living in the same building. In some states, you’re required to give at least 24 hours’ notice before entering.

Massachusetts owner-occupied landlord rights allow landlords to enter a unit without notice. You can enter at any time. However, as a courtesy to renters, it’s recommended that landlords at least give 24 hours’ notice. With notice or without, you’ll still need a good reason to enter the property, such as showing it to potential tenants, making repairs, spraying for pests or inspecting the premises before moveout or if abandonment is suspected.

It's also important for owner-occupied landlords to honor the renter’s privacy. While you can limit the renter’s right to have guests for an extended period, avoid behavior that could be seen as a privacy violation. You should refrain from giving out information on your renters to others, bothering tenants at work and doing anything that could be seen as spying or sexual harassment.

As with all rental properties, owner-occupied rental laws are designed to protect both the tenant and the landlord. An important part of this is ensuring that the space is habitable. In Massachusetts, landlords must follow something called a warranty of habitability, which obligates you to make sure the properties you rent are in good condition for the entirety of a renter’s time there.

Failure to keep a renter’s property in good condition puts you at risk for a civil lawsuit. As soon as your tenant notifies you of the issues, you’ve breached the warrant of habitability and will be assumed to have known about the issue from the time the person moved in. If that defect affects other people renting space on the property, you’ll also be in breach of their warranties. You cannot merely state that the rent the tenant was paying was discounted all along for the issues.

One of the most important landlord laws Massachusetts tenants should note is the renter’s right to quiet enjoyment. This is especially relevant in owner-occupied buildings since it dictates your own behavior. The name of this law can be a bit misleading, implying that it’s specific to noise levels, but it goes beyond that.

Under the right to quiet enjoyment, landlords are obligated to provide all services and utilities promised in the lease even if rent is overdue. In other words, you can’t cut off a renter’s utility in the hopes she’ll voluntarily leave or pay up. You also can’t lock a renter out of her apartment or contact the utility company to have services cut off because of nonpayment of rent.