Key points
- Aim for a lease that ends in mid to late August. A unit that comes to market outside the September cycle reaches fewer renters.
- Price with a range rather than a single number, and let weekly inquiries tell you where you stand. A month of vacancy costs a full month’s rent, about 8.3% of a year’s income.
- Write down your screening criteria before you list and apply them to every applicant. Massachusetts protects renters who use housing vouchers and families with children; for a voucher holder, measure income against the tenant’s share of the rent.
- Plan for repairs. Nonpayment is handled through formal notice and the court, never by changing the locks.
Timing the lease
A large share of Greater Boston renters move around September 1 and start looking in spring. Listing two to three months before the start date puts your unit in front of the most people. A unit that comes up in early summer or in winter reaches fewer renters and may take longer to fill.
When the lease ends matters more than how long it runs. A 12- or 18-month lease that ends in mid to late August lines your next vacancy up with the busiest season. Mid-August is often easier than August 31, when cleaners and movers are fully booked.
Pricing
Start from recent comparable rentals nearby, then set a range rather than a single number. Where you list within the range depends on how soon you need a tenant: a lower price reaches more renters and fills faster; a higher one waits for the renter who particularly likes this home.
Once the listing is on MLS and the major rental sites, the whole market can see it, so inquiries are your signal. A week with few inquiries and fewer showings means the price is high. When you adjust, make it a real step; a cut of $50 or so rarely changes the response. Keep the arithmetic in view: an empty month costs a full month’s rent, while a modest reduction spread over a 12-month lease usually costs less than that.
Season matters too. May and June tend to favor renters and late summer favors owners. February and March are slow, and pricing at the top of the range then rarely pays off.
Preparing the unit
Before photos and showings:
- Repairs and a thorough clean, working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, and everything else the State Sanitary Code requires
- For a home built before 1978, the lead paint disclosures, and deleading or interim control if a child under six will live there. Refusing to rent to a family with children to avoid these duties is illegal
- For a condo, the association’s rules: whether rentals are allowed, minimum lease terms, move-in fees and tenant registration
- In Boston, registration of the rental unit with the city
- Good photos and an accurate floor plan; renters decide from the listing
Screening tenants
Write your criteria down before you list, apply them in the same way to every applicant, and keep the record. Typical criteria cover income relative to rent, credit, rental history and references; they should be about the ability to pay rent and look after the home.
Fair housing law decides what you may not consider. Beyond the federal list, Massachusetts protects, among others, renters who receive a housing voucher or other public assistance, families with children, and people of any marital status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or veteran status. Describe the home in your advertising, never the tenant you want, and do not ask about protected characteristics. If an applicant uses a housing voucher, apply your income standard to the share of the rent the tenant pays, and consider requests for a reasonable accommodation, such as an assistance animal.
A guarantor can make an otherwise good application work. Ask the guarantor for the same documents and a higher income multiple.
After move-in
Answer repair requests promptly and keep a written record. In a condo, problems that start in common areas, such as a leak from above or pests moving through the building, also involve the association; coordinate rather than leave the tenant to chase it.
If rent goes unpaid under a written lease, the process begins with a notice to quit for nonpayment, usually 14 days and longer for some federally assisted or federally financed properties. In many cases the tenant can still stop the case by paying the full rent due, with interest and costs, by the court’s answer date. Only a court can order an eviction. Changing the locks, removing belongings or shutting off utilities to force a tenant out is illegal.
Keep the deposit records, the statement of condition and your move-in photos together. They decide what you can deduct when the tenancy ends.
General information for first-time landlords in Massachusetts, current as of the date shown. It is not legal or tax advice. Rules on deposits, broker fees and habitability are covered in the compliance checklist.