Massachusetts Eviction Sealing Law Strengthens Housing Access for Renters

By Katie Renzi, NLIHC State and Local Research Intern

On May 5, 2025, Massachusetts’ eviction record sealing law officially went into effect, providing renters with past eviction filings a clean slate towards securing safe, stable, and affordable housing of their choosing. Enacted as part of the landmark “Affordable Homes Act” in 2024, the provision allows tenants to petition the courts to have past eviction filings removed from public view under specific conditions. Under the new law, tenants whose eviction cases were dismissed, decided in their favor, or resolved through satisfied judgments with the courts can apply to have their records sealed. Once sealed, an eviction case is no longer visible to the public or to tenant-screening and credit-reporting companies, and tenants may legally state that they have “no record” of an eviction when applying for new housing. The law aims to correct a long-standing imbalance in Massachusetts’ housing system, where even a dismissed eviction case could shadow a renter for years, leading to repeated denials and worsening cycles of housing insecurity.

To make the process of filing a petition more accessible, the state has implemented an online guided interview tool through the Massachusetts Trial Court’s website, developed in collaboration with Suffolk University Law School’s Legal Innovation & Technology Lab. The tool walks tenants through the sealing petition step-by-step, using plain-language questions to generate the necessary court documents automatically. Advocates note that this innovation is helping to remove procedural and literacy barriers that previously made court filings difficult for self-represented tenants. The system is also mobile-friendly and available in multiple languages, expanding access to thousands of renters who might otherwise face technological or linguistic challenges in navigating the courts.

Before this reform, eviction filings in Massachusetts were publicly accessible, meaning that any landlord or screening company could view a renter’s court history regardless of the case’s outcome. Advocates at the Harvard Tenant Advocacy Project (TAP) describe the presence of a filing alone as “a scarlet letter” in tenant screening processes, jeopardizing future housing opportunities. This is especially consequential given that Massachusetts courts record roughly 40,000 eviction filings in a single year. According to TAP, roughly 1,200 individuals statewide petitioned to seal their records within the first four months of the law’s enactment, though they believe this number represents “only the tip of the iceberg,” with thousands more expected to file as outreach and digital tools expand.  

With this reform, Massachusetts joins a growing number of states and localities that have enacted eviction record sealing or expungement laws. As evidenced by NLIHC’s State and Local Tenant Protections Database, in 2024 alone, Massachusetts was joined by Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia, Idaho, and Wisconsin in passing laws sealing or expunging eviction records, while three additional states have adopted similar protections in 2025, including Colorado, Delaware, and North Dakota. The growing number of jurisdictions adopting these legal protections underscores a growing movement among state and local housing advocates to reform tenant screening practices and bolster accessibility—and even racial equity—in the private rental market.  

When eviction record sealing and expungement protections are implemented, renter households are shielded from the lasting—and sometimes permanent—consequences that eviction records can have. Even in cases where an eviction filing was dismissed against a tenant, or if the case was found to be in favor of the tenant, the mere presence of an eviction can result in the denial of a tenant from a housing opportunity. Given that credit companies routinely collect information on renters, which then assists landlords in screening tenants when applying for housing through background or credit checks, tenants can be shut out of securing housing of their choosing, with an eviction filing serving as an inequitable predictor of whether a tenant is able to pay their rent and uphold the obligations of a lease agreement.  

More than this, given that eviction filings disproportionately impact renter households of color and low-income households, eviction record sealing protections can rectify the equity imbalance that has impacted the most marginalized renter populations. According to data collected by the Eviction Lab at Princeton University, between 2000 and 2018, an average of 3.6 million evictions were filed yearly, accounting for 7% of all renter households in the country. Within this data, it is found that households of color, and especially Black women, face the greatest eviction risk. Over the course of their lifetimes, 1 in 5 Black women are evicted, while only 1 in 15 white women are evicted. Mothers, especially women of color, are also found to earn less than their male counterparts. For households where single mothers are the sole income earners for their households, the disproportionate threat of eviction is far more precarious, leaving the security of stable housing at risk.

In Massachusetts, the eviction sealing provision was just one aspect of the “Massachusetts’ Affordable Homes Act,” legislation passed by the state legislature and signed by Governor Maura Healey in 2024. The law allocates $5.16 billion into housing programs and reforms over the next five years, representing the largest housing investment in the state’s history. Among the largest investments were $2 billion for Public Housing repair and modernization, $800 million for the Affordable Housing Trust Fund, and $425 million for the Housing Stabilization and Investment Fund. These investments are intended to expand access to safe, affordable housing for renters through the preservation and creation of affordable housing units across the state. Additionally, the law institutes several zoning reforms and incentive programs aimed at increasing housing density and promoting the production of multifamily homes.

The “Affordable Homes Act” also introduced additional tenant protection measures beyond eviction record sealing. The law established the Massachusetts Healthy Homes Program, which aims to address habitability concerns for residential units, including the presence of mold, asbestos, and lead. It also created an Office of Fair Housing within the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, and Fair Housing Trust Fund, providing enhanced enforcement, testing, and education for housing civil rights protections.  

Taken together, these reforms reflect a comprehensive housing strategy where stronger tenant protections are paired with historic investments in affordable housing. The eviction record sealing provision directly addresses a barrier that has long perpetuated housing inequities, particularly among renters of color who experience eviction filings at disproportionately high rates. By aligning record sealing with large-scale housing production and preservation, Massachusetts is promoting a more equitable and inclusive housing ecosystem for renters.

To learn more about Massachusetts’ eviction record sealing, including the Guided Interview tool, a link to the state’s webpage describing the process is provided here. Information about the “Affordable Housing Act” is available here.