There are waiting lists for most public and subsidized housing in Massachusetts. This article will help you understand how to figure out which waiting lists are open, and how to keep track of all your housing applications.
How waiting lists work:
Unfortunately, the number of people who need affordable housing in Massachusetts is higher than the number of spots that are available. Because of this, housing agencies and owners of multifamily subsidized housing keep waiting lists of applicants.1 These lists keep track of people who are waiting to find affordable housing. Housing agencies and owners reach out to applicants on their waiting lists when affordable housing units open up.
In recent years, waiting lists have grown longer. In fact, many places have stopped taking new applications or only take some.
Because the waiting lists are so long, it is important to:
- Apply for as many different housing programs as you can.
- See if you fit into any preferences or priorities so that you can improve your chances of getting to the top of the lists more quickly. Learn more in Chapter 4: Who Has Priority.
- Ask for a written receipt for all applications you submit. They are your best proof that you have applied for a particular housing program and the date you applied.
- Keep track of your applications and your place on all the waiting lists.
- If you move, give your new address to all the places where you submitted applications.
Housing search agency websites
One way to find out which waiting lists for public housing and vouchers are open is to search at the Housing Navigator Massachusetts website. Housing search agencies may also be able to complete applications for you on the computer. For a list of housing search agencies, see the Directory.
Newspapers
You may also find out from the newspaper when a Section 8 waiting list opens. When a Section 8 waiting list opens, a housing authority must give public notice. This notice must be published in a local newspaper of general circulation and through minority media. The notice must say
- where to apply,
- when to apply, and
- any limitations on who may apply.2
Lists that are always open
There are 2 large Section 8 waiting lists that always accept applications.
- Regional nonprofit housing agencies: You can access the application to apply to this statewide list at the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities. Then submit the completed application form to a Regional Administering Agency. Find the Regional Administering Agency in your area.
- Section 8 Centralized Waiting List: This is a single waiting list for about 100 housing authorities. To apply to the group list (one application for all participating housing authorities), go to Section 8 List.
Yes. Sometimes a waiting list for a particular type of housing can be closed. If this happens, you cannot apply for that type of housing with that housing agency or landlord.
Public housing
In general, public housing lists are almost always open.
Vouchers
If a housing authority or regional nonprofit housing agency decides that its waiting list for Section 8 vouchers has enough applicants based on available funding, it may stop accepting new applications.3 This is known as closing the list. Some lists continue to accept applications, but may not be issuing new vouchers.
Multifamily housing
For housing subsidized through MassHousing, an owner can close a waiting list only if the owner gets permission from the state agency.4 For other multifamily programs, waiting lists can be closed more easily.
Waiting lists can be organized either by:
- the date and time your application was received (first come, first served), or by
- a random lottery.5
Random lotteries can work in different ways. Housing authorities will accept applications for a certain period of time. Then, after the application period closes, the housing authority creates a waiting list by randomly picking applicants and giving them a number on the waiting list.
Some waiting lists have priorities and preferences which can move you up on the list.
The housing agency can use a random lottery among all applicants on a waiting list or among all applicants in particular priority categories.6
Regardless of how a waiting list is organized, you should ask for a written receipt for all applications you submit. Housing authorities must give a written receipt to applicants for state public housing. Most other programs will give you a written receipt if you ask.7 If you applied for a waitlist online, you may have gotten an application number and/or email showing that you applied for the waitlist. Save these written receipts. They are your best proof that you have applied for a particular housing program and the date you applied.
There are more people applying than there are available apartments. Because of this, the law says that some housing programs must establish “preferences” and “priorities” for certain people.
Both preferences and priorities are categories for people with special status or urgent housing needs.
- State housing programs have priorities to see who gets housing first. Within a priority group, there may also be preferences about who gets housing first.
- Federal housing programs usually have preferences, not priorities.
Your position on the waiting list depends on which preference or priority you qualify for. Different types of public and subsidized housing have different priorities and preferences. If you know which priorities or preferences you qualify for, this can help you get housing more quickly. See Chapter 4: Who Has Priority.
Unfortunately, the number of people who need affordable housing in Massachusetts is higher than the number of spots that are available. Because of this, housing agencies and owners of multifamily subsidized housing keep waiting lists of applicants.1 These lists keep track of people who are waiting to find affordable housing. Housing agencies and owners reach out to applicants on their waiting lists when affordable housing units open up.
In recent years, waiting lists have grown longer. In fact, many places have stopped taking new applications or only take some.
Because the waiting lists are so long, it is important to:
- Apply for as many different housing programs as you can.
- See if you fit into any preferences or priorities so that you can improve your chances of getting to the top of the lists more quickly. Learn more in Chapter 4: Who Has Priority.
- Ask for a written receipt for all applications you submit. They are your best proof that you have applied for a particular housing program and the date you applied.
- Keep track of your applications and your place on all the waiting lists.
- If you move, give your new address to all the places where you submitted applications.
Housing search agency websites
One way to find out which waiting lists for public housing and vouchers are open is to search at the Housing Navigator Massachusetts website. Housing search agencies may also be able to complete applications for you on the computer. For a list of housing search agencies, see the Directory.
Newspapers
You may also find out from the newspaper when a Section 8 waiting list opens. When a Section 8 waiting list opens, a housing authority must give public notice. This notice must be published in a local newspaper of general circulation and through minority media. The notice must say
- where to apply,
- when to apply, and
- any limitations on who may apply.2
Lists that are always open
There are 2 large Section 8 waiting lists that always accept applications.
- Regional nonprofit housing agencies: You can access the application to apply to this statewide list at the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities. Then submit the completed application form to a Regional Administering Agency. Find the Regional Administering Agency in your area.
- Section 8 Centralized Waiting List: This is a single waiting list for about 100 housing authorities. To apply to the group list (one application for all participating housing authorities), go to Section 8 List.
Yes. Sometimes a waiting list for a particular type of housing can be closed. If this happens, you cannot apply for that type of housing with that housing agency or landlord.
Public housing
In general, public housing lists are almost always open.
Vouchers
If a housing authority or regional nonprofit housing agency decides that its waiting list for Section 8 vouchers has enough applicants based on available funding, it may stop accepting new applications.3 This is known as closing the list. Some lists continue to accept applications, but may not be issuing new vouchers.
Multifamily housing
For housing subsidized through MassHousing, an owner can close a waiting list only if the owner gets permission from the state agency.4 For other multifamily programs, waiting lists can be closed more easily.
Waiting lists can be organized either by:
- the date and time your application was received (first come, first served), or by
- a random lottery.5
Random lotteries can work in different ways. Housing authorities will accept applications for a certain period of time. Then, after the application period closes, the housing authority creates a waiting list by randomly picking applicants and giving them a number on the waiting list.
Some waiting lists have priorities and preferences which can move you up on the list.
The housing agency can use a random lottery among all applicants on a waiting list or among all applicants in particular priority categories.6
Regardless of how a waiting list is organized, you should ask for a written receipt for all applications you submit. Housing authorities must give a written receipt to applicants for state public housing. Most other programs will give you a written receipt if you ask.7 If you applied for a waitlist online, you may have gotten an application number and/or email showing that you applied for the waitlist. Save these written receipts. They are your best proof that you have applied for a particular housing program and the date you applied.
There are more people applying than there are available apartments. Because of this, the law says that some housing programs must establish “preferences” and “priorities” for certain people.
Both preferences and priorities are categories for people with special status or urgent housing needs.
- State housing programs have priorities to see who gets housing first. Within a priority group, there may also be preferences about who gets housing first.
- Federal housing programs usually have preferences, not priorities.
Your position on the waiting list depends on which preference or priority you qualify for. Different types of public and subsidized housing have different priorities and preferences. If you know which priorities or preferences you qualify for, this can help you get housing more quickly. See Chapter 4: Who Has Priority.
Once you are on a waiting list:
If your application for a housing program is accepted, your name goes onto a waiting list for that program. You then have to wait until your name comes to the top of the list.
For federal public housing, the housing authority will tell you when they think an apartment for you may be available.8
Other programs may give you only a rough estimate or simply confirm your waiting list status. They may also let you know if you have priority status.
Multifamily housing owners are not required to contact you until your name reaches the top of the waiting list. But they may require you to contact them every so often to stay on the waiting list.9
Screening
At some point, as your name gets closer to the top of the list, the housing agency or landlord will do “screening.” This means they:
- check your landlord references,
- check your credit reports, and
- do a criminal background check for most members of your household.
To get ready for this, see Tenant Screening.
Staying on the list
Once you are on a waiting list, housing agencies and landlords will from time to time send you a notice asking whether you are still interested in being on the waiting list.10 They will only give you a short time to respond to this notice. If you do not respond by the deadline, you will be taken off the waiting list.
For this reason, you should check your mail and email regularly and respond quickly to any request. If you move, you must send written notice of your new address, such as a letter or an email, to all the places where you submitted applications. Keep a copy of your letter so you can prove that you notified the agency or landlord of your change in address.
Multifamily housing owners may also require you to contact them every so often to stay on the waiting list.
If you apply for state housing through CHAMP, you will need to log into the CHAMP website or contact a housing agency at least once every 2 years to keep your application active.
Keep track of your number
As an applicant, you have the right to find out where you are on each waiting list you apply to. When your application has been accepted, you will likely be given a number for that application. This is usually called a client number or a control number. Always keep a record of your number. You will need it to find your place on the waiting list in the future. Each place you apply may give you a different number. It is important that you keep a record of each number.
- Public housing: In state public housing, they give you separate numbers for the standard application and the emergency application.
- Vouchers: There is no standard way numbers are assigned for voucher applications.
- Multifamily subsidized housing: Some landlords give out a number only after an applicant is found eligible and any priority has been checked (“verified”). Some never give a number.
To learn more about how to keep track of your housing search, see How to Apply.
Keep in contact
Because waiting lists are so long, you may want to contact the housing agency or landlord every so often to see what progress you are making on the waiting list. Different housing agencies and landlords have different ways they want you to contact them. For example, some require you to contact them in writing before they will mail you a letter that tells you your current place on the list. Others have certain days and times during the week when you can call or go in person to find out your current place on the list.
If you are applying for federal public and multifamily housing, housing authorities and owners must give applicants the option to have a third party be notified about any issues with your application.11 This means that if you are working with a caseworker, you can ask that the caseworker receive your mail about your application. But you can even identify a family member or friend. This can be helpful for you to keep track of your applications.
Keep notes
It can be hard to keep track of your housing search. You often have a lot of papers, you are applying to many housing authorities and developments, and you are on waiting lists for a long time. It is a good idea to keep your own notes. Use a log to keep track of your waiting list numbers and other information.
Waiting lists for housing programs can be very long. If you apply for housing in a lottery, you may be lucky and be selected earlier. This means you will have a place closer to the top of the waiting list.
If you qualify for a preference or priority used by the housing authority or landlord, you will move more quickly up a waiting list. If you do not qualify for any priority or preference, you are considered a “standard applicant” and will wait longer.
In general, waiting lists for public housing are shorter than for vouchers and subsidized multifamily buildings. For public housing, waiting lists for housing programs for elders and people with disabilities are often shorter than for family housing. Waiting lists for apartments with more bedrooms may be longer, since there are fewer units of 4 or more bedrooms available.
Depending on the size of your family, you can ask for an apartment with fewer bedrooms if that would make your wait shorter.
In state public housing for both elders and people with disabilities, there is a limit on apartments for people with disabilities who are not elderly. Under state law, a housing authority cannot rent more than 13.5% of this type of housing to non-elderly people with disabilities. Some communities have been at this 13.5% cap for years.12 If you have a disability and are not elderly, this will make your time on some waiting lists extremely long.
Because of this, you may want to apply for the Alternative Housing Voucher Program (AHVP).13 This program was designed to help people with disabilities who have no realistic chance of getting an apartment in state elderly/disabled public housing because of the 13.5% cap.
Some federal public housing for elders and people with disabilities may also have a cap on the number of people with disabilities who can get an apartment.
If your situation changes after you have been placed on a waiting list and you become eligible for a preference or a priority, tell housing agencies and subsidized landlords right away. Qualifying for a preference can move your place on the waiting list closer to the top.
This also explains why sometimes you move further from the top of the list. When people who apply after you later qualify for a preference or priority, they move ahead of other applicants.
Other changes that may affect your placement on the waiting list include:
- changes in household size,
- becoming elderly or disabled, or
- losing a preference or priority.
Because preferences and priorities vary among programs, make sure you ask each place where you have applied what its priorities and preferences are. For more on this see Who Has Priority.
It depends.
If you moved and never told the housing agency or landlord your new address, you may not be able to do anything about being removed from a waiting list.
If you were taken off a waiting list and it was related to a disability (for example, if you were hospitalized at the time a notice was sent to you), you can ask to be put back on the waiting list as a reasonable accommodation for your disability.14 To learn more, see Reasonable Accommodations.
If your application for a housing program is accepted, your name goes onto a waiting list for that program. You then have to wait until your name comes to the top of the list.
For federal public housing, the housing authority will tell you when they think an apartment for you may be available.8
Other programs may give you only a rough estimate or simply confirm your waiting list status. They may also let you know if you have priority status.
Multifamily housing owners are not required to contact you until your name reaches the top of the waiting list. But they may require you to contact them every so often to stay on the waiting list.9
Screening
At some point, as your name gets closer to the top of the list, the housing agency or landlord will do “screening.” This means they:
- check your landlord references,
- check your credit reports, and
- do a criminal background check for most members of your household.
To get ready for this, see Tenant Screening.
Staying on the list
Once you are on a waiting list, housing agencies and landlords will from time to time send you a notice asking whether you are still interested in being on the waiting list.10 They will only give you a short time to respond to this notice. If you do not respond by the deadline, you will be taken off the waiting list.
For this reason, you should check your mail and email regularly and respond quickly to any request. If you move, you must send written notice of your new address, such as a letter or an email, to all the places where you submitted applications. Keep a copy of your letter so you can prove that you notified the agency or landlord of your change in address.
Multifamily housing owners may also require you to contact them every so often to stay on the waiting list.
If you apply for state housing through CHAMP, you will need to log into the CHAMP website or contact a housing agency at least once every 2 years to keep your application active.
Keep track of your number
As an applicant, you have the right to find out where you are on each waiting list you apply to. When your application has been accepted, you will likely be given a number for that application. This is usually called a client number or a control number. Always keep a record of your number. You will need it to find your place on the waiting list in the future. Each place you apply may give you a different number. It is important that you keep a record of each number.
- Public housing: In state public housing, they give you separate numbers for the standard application and the emergency application.
- Vouchers: There is no standard way numbers are assigned for voucher applications.
- Multifamily subsidized housing: Some landlords give out a number only after an applicant is found eligible and any priority has been checked (“verified”). Some never give a number.
To learn more about how to keep track of your housing search, see How to Apply.
Keep in contact
Because waiting lists are so long, you may want to contact the housing agency or landlord every so often to see what progress you are making on the waiting list. Different housing agencies and landlords have different ways they want you to contact them. For example, some require you to contact them in writing before they will mail you a letter that tells you your current place on the list. Others have certain days and times during the week when you can call or go in person to find out your current place on the list.
If you are applying for federal public and multifamily housing, housing authorities and owners must give applicants the option to have a third party be notified about any issues with your application.11 This means that if you are working with a caseworker, you can ask that the caseworker receive your mail about your application. But you can even identify a family member or friend. This can be helpful for you to keep track of your applications.
Keep notes
It can be hard to keep track of your housing search. You often have a lot of papers, you are applying to many housing authorities and developments, and you are on waiting lists for a long time. It is a good idea to keep your own notes. Use a log to keep track of your waiting list numbers and other information.
Waiting lists for housing programs can be very long. If you apply for housing in a lottery, you may be lucky and be selected earlier. This means you will have a place closer to the top of the waiting list.
If you qualify for a preference or priority used by the housing authority or landlord, you will move more quickly up a waiting list. If you do not qualify for any priority or preference, you are considered a “standard applicant” and will wait longer.
In general, waiting lists for public housing are shorter than for vouchers and subsidized multifamily buildings. For public housing, waiting lists for housing programs for elders and people with disabilities are often shorter than for family housing. Waiting lists for apartments with more bedrooms may be longer, since there are fewer units of 4 or more bedrooms available.
Depending on the size of your family, you can ask for an apartment with fewer bedrooms if that would make your wait shorter.
In state public housing for both elders and people with disabilities, there is a limit on apartments for people with disabilities who are not elderly. Under state law, a housing authority cannot rent more than 13.5% of this type of housing to non-elderly people with disabilities. Some communities have been at this 13.5% cap for years.12 If you have a disability and are not elderly, this will make your time on some waiting lists extremely long.
Because of this, you may want to apply for the Alternative Housing Voucher Program (AHVP).13 This program was designed to help people with disabilities who have no realistic chance of getting an apartment in state elderly/disabled public housing because of the 13.5% cap.
Some federal public housing for elders and people with disabilities may also have a cap on the number of people with disabilities who can get an apartment.
If your situation changes after you have been placed on a waiting list and you become eligible for a preference or a priority, tell housing agencies and subsidized landlords right away. Qualifying for a preference can move your place on the waiting list closer to the top.
This also explains why sometimes you move further from the top of the list. When people who apply after you later qualify for a preference or priority, they move ahead of other applicants.
Other changes that may affect your placement on the waiting list include:
- changes in household size,
- becoming elderly or disabled, or
- losing a preference or priority.
Because preferences and priorities vary among programs, make sure you ask each place where you have applied what its priorities and preferences are. For more on this see Who Has Priority.
It depends.
If you moved and never told the housing agency or landlord your new address, you may not be able to do anything about being removed from a waiting list.
If you were taken off a waiting list and it was related to a disability (for example, if you were hospitalized at the time a notice was sent to you), you can ask to be put back on the waiting list as a reasonable accommodation for your disability.14 To learn more, see Reasonable Accommodations.
Federal public housing: 24 C.F.R. § 960.206; Section 8 voucher program: 24 C.F.R. §§ 982.204-207; State public housing, Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program (MRVP), and Alternative Housing Voucher Program (AHVP): 760 C.M.R. § 5.05(2).
24 C.F.R. § 982.206.
24 C.F.R. § 982.206(c).
MHFA Tenant Selection Plan (Section 8/Section 236/Section 13A/MRVP/Rental Assistance/Rent Supplement Program Developments), REV: 10/18, § G, available through www.masshousing.com.
Federal public housing: 24 C.F.R. § 960.206(e); Section 8 voucher program: 24 C.F.R. § 982.204(b); State public housing, MRVP, and AHVP: 760 C.M.R. § 5.05.
Federal public housing: 24 C.F.R. § 960.206(e); Section 8: 24 C.F.R. § 982.204(b).
760 C.M.R. §5.05(2).
24 C.F.R. § 960.208(b).
MHFA Tenant Selection Plan (Section 8/Section 236/Section 13A/MRVP/Rental Assistance/Rent Supplement Program Developments), REV: 10/18, § G, available through www.masshousing.com.
Section 8 voucher program: 24 C.F.R. § 982.204(c); State public housing: 760 C.M.R. § 5.14; MassHousing subsidized housing developments: MHFA Tenant Selection Plan (Section 8/Section 236/Section 13A/MRVP/Rental Assistance/Rent Supplement Program Developments), REV: 10/18, § G, available through www.masshousing.com.
HUD Public Housing Notice 2012-22 (May 9, 2012), parallel to HUD Housing Notice 2012-09.
760 C.M.R. § 5.10(1)(a) and (2).
760 C.M.R. §§ 53.00 et seq.
24 C.F.R. § 982.204(c)(2).