Not legal advice. This is a free reference compiled from official government sources. Laws change and local details matter. Confirm every deadline with the official source or a licensed attorney before you rely on it.
Last verified: · Confidence: medium
Massachusetts landlord deadlines
Statewide rules for Massachusetts. Cities and counties can add their own rules. Statutes and agency pages: malegislature.gov.
Return deposit (with interest) within 30 days after tenancy ends; sworn itemized damages list Verified
Deadline: Within 30 days after move-out
Return the deposit or balance with interest within 30 days after the tenancy ends. Any damage deduction requires a sworn, itemized list with written cost evidence within the same 30 days.
"The lessor shall, within thirty days after the termination of occupancy under a tenancy-at-will or the end of the tenancy as specified in a valid written lease agreement, return to the tenant the security deposit or any balance thereof;" malegislature.gov
"the lessor shall provide to the tenant within such thirty days an itemized list of damages, sworn to by the lessor or his agent under pains and penalties of perjury," malegislature.gov
Notes: M.G.L. c.186 §15B(4). Violations can trigger treble damages under §15B(7).
Last verified 2026-10-20 · Confidence: high · Status: verified · Report a correction
Bank receipt (bank name/location, amount, account number) within 30 days of deposit Verified
Deadline: Within 30 days after the lease starts
Hold the deposit in a separate interest-bearing Massachusetts bank account and, within 30 days of receiving it, give the tenant a receipt with the bank name and location, amount and account number.
"A receipt shall be given to the tenant within thirty days after such deposit is received by the lessor which receipt shall indicate the name and location of the bank in which the security deposit has been deposited and the amount and account number of said deposit." malegislature.gov
Notes: M.G.L. c.186 §15B(3)(a). Failure entitles the tenant to immediate return of the deposit. Anchor approximates the date the deposit was received.
Last verified 2026-10-20 · Confidence: high · Status: verified · Report a correction
Signed receipt for security deposit at the time it is received Verified
Deadline: At the time the security deposit is received
Give the tenant a signed receipt showing the deposit amount, who received it, the date and a description of the premises when you receive the deposit.
"Any lessor or his agent who receives a security deposit from a tenant or prospective tenant shall give said tenant or prospective tenant at the time of receiving such security deposit a receipt indicating the amount of such security deposit," malegislature.gov
Notes: M.G.L. c.186 §15B(2)(b). Deposit (and last month's rent) each capped at first month's rent (§15B(1)(b), not quoted).
Last verified 2026-10-20 · Confidence: high · Status: verified · Report a correction
Statement of condition of premises within 10 days of tenancy start (if deposit taken) Verified
Deadline: Within 10 days after the lease starts
If you take a deposit, give the tenant a signed written statement of the unit's present condition upon receipt of the deposit or within 10 days after the tenancy starts, whichever is later.
Who it covers: Only if a security deposit is accepted.
"shall, upon receipt of such security deposit, or within ten days after commencement of the tenancy, whichever is later, furnish to such tenant or prospective tenant a separate written statement of the present condition of the premises to be leased or rented." malegislature.gov
Notes: M.G.L. c.186 §15B(2)(c). Statute requires specific bold-face notice text at the top.
Last verified 2026-10-20 · Confidence: high · Status: verified · Report a correction
Annual deposit interest (5% or bank rate) and statement at end of each tenancy year Verified
Deadline: Each year on the lease anniversary
At the end of each year of tenancy, send the tenant a statement with bank name/address, deposit amount, account number and interest owed, and pay the interest (5%/yr or the lesser bank rate) or tell the tenant to deduct it from rent.
Who it covers: Applies when a deposit is held one year or longer.
"pay interest at the rate of five per cent per year, or other such lesser amount of interest as has been received from the bank where the deposit has been held payable to the tenant at the end of each year of the tenancy." malegislature.gov
"At the end of each year of a tenancy, such lessor shall give or send to the tenant from whom a security deposit has been received a statement which shall indicate the name and address of the bank in which the security deposit has been placed," malegislature.gov
Notes: M.G.L. c.186 §15B(3)(b). If not received within 30 days after the year ends, tenant may deduct the interest from rent. Last month's rent paid in advance has a parallel interest/receipt/annual statement rule (§15B(2)(a)).
Last verified 2026-10-20 · Confidence: high · Status: verified · Report a correction
Interest and annual statement on prepaid last month's rent Verified
Deadline: Each year on the lease anniversary
If you collected last month's rent in advance, give a receipt at the time, and at the end of each tenancy year send a statement and pay the interest (5% or lesser bank rate) or let the tenant deduct it.
Who it covers: Only if last month's rent was collected in advance.
"At the end of each year of tenancy, such lessor shall give or send to the tenant from whom rent in advance was collected a statement which shall indicate the amount payable by such lessor to the tenant." malegislature.gov
Notes: M.G.L. c.186 §15B(2)(a).
Last verified 2026-10-20 · Confidence: high · Status: verified · Report a correction
Check city/town for rental registration or pre-rental inspection (smoke/CO) Verified
Deadline: Ongoing requirement with no fixed date
The Attorney General advises landlords to check with their city or town: many require pre-rental inspections (e.g., smoke and CO detectors) and some, including Boston, require rental registration.
"Many cities and towns require a pre-rental inspection for items such as smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. Some cities and towns, including the City of Boston, require landlords to register rental units with the city." mass.gov
Notes: Pointer rule; see city files (Boston, Cambridge). State smoke/CO certificate law (M.G.L. c.148 §26F, §26F1/2) triggers on sale/transfer, not on rental—not modeled.
Last verified 2026-10-20 · Confidence: medium · Status: verified · Report a correction
Delead or contain lead hazards when a child under 6 lives in the unit Verified
Deadline: When a child under 6 resides in the unit (new owners: within 90 days of change of ownership)
If a child under six lives in a unit with dangerous lead levels, the owner must abate or contain the lead hazards (obtaining a letter of compliance or interim control).
Who it covers: Homes built before 1978 with lead hazards where a child under six resides. New owner has 90 days after purchase. Applies to small and owner-occupied rentals too.
"The Lead Law requires the removal or covering of lead paint hazards in homes built before 1978 where any children under 6 live." mass.gov
"Whenever a child under six years of age resides in any premises in which any paint, plaster or other accessible structural material contains dangerous levels of lead, the owner shall abate or contain said paint," malegislature.gov
Notes: M.G.L. c.111 §197. Owners may not refuse to rent to families with children because of lead (anti-discrimination, §199A, not snapshotted).
Last verified 2026-10-20 · Confidence: high · Status: verified · Report a correction
Tenant Lead Law Notification and lead records before renting (pre-1978) Verified
Deadline: Prior to entering into a tenancy agreement
Before a new tenancy, give the prospective tenant the state lead notification materials and form, the most recent lead inspection report / letter of compliance or interim control, and two copies of a signed receipt certification.
Who it covers: Applies whether or not a child under 6 will live there. Satisfies both state and federal tenant notification if the state form is used together with records.
"owners must comply with Tenant Notification requirements when a prospective tenant is about to rent a home built before 1978. This applies whether they have a child under 6 or not." mass.gov
"prior to entering into a tenancy agreement, the owner of premises or such other person to whom rent is to be regularly paid, shall provide a prospective tenant who is about to enter such an agreement to rent premises with:" malegislature.gov
Notes: M.G.L. c.111 §197A(d); pre-1978 scope from the DPH Tenant Lead Law Notification page (regulation 105 CMR 460.725 not snapshotted).
Last verified 2026-10-20 · Confidence: high · Status: verified · Report a correction
Rent increase for tenant at will uses the same termination-notice period Verified
Deadline: At least 30 days before the rent increase takes effect
For tenants at will, a rent increase is done by a written notice ending the tenancy and offering a new one at the new rent, with at least one rental period or 30 days' notice, whichever is longer.
Who it covers: No state rent control. Mid-lease increases governed by the lease.
"Such written notice may include an offer to establish a new tenancy for the same premises on terms different from that of the tenancy being terminated and the validity of such written notice shall not be affected by the inclusion of such offer." malegislature.gov
Notes: Inference from M.G.L. c.186 §12; the statute does not use the words 'rent increase'. Rental period or 30 days, whichever is longer.
Last verified 2026-10-20 · Confidence: medium · Status: verified · Report a correction
Notice to end (or change terms of) a tenancy at will: rental period or 30 days, whichever is longer Verified
Deadline: At least one full rental period or 30 days before the tenancy ends, whichever is longer (dated 31 days ahead to cover a full monthly rent period; three months' notice if rent is paid less often than every three months)
To end a tenancy at will, give written notice equal to the interval between rent days or 30 days, whichever is longer. The notice may include an offer of a new tenancy on different terms (e.g., higher rent).
Who it covers: Tenancies at will (month-to-month). Fixed-term leases follow lease terms.
"if the rent reserved is payable at periods of less than three months, the time of such notice shall be sufficient if it is equal to the interval between the days of payment or thirty days, whichever is longer." malegislature.gov
"Such written notice may include an offer to establish a new tenancy for the same premises on terms different from that of the tenancy being terminated" malegislature.gov
Notes: M.G.L. c.186 §12. In practice notice should end on a rent day; that case-law point is not captured here. Must be at least one full rental period (interval between rent days) or 30 days, whichever is longer; three months if rent is paid less often.
Last verified 2026-10-20 · Confidence: high · Status: verified · Report a correction
Entry by advance arrangement for listed purposes (no fixed notice period) Verified
Deadline: Ongoing requirement with no fixed date
Arrange entry with the tenant in advance to make repairs, inspect, or show the unit; entry without approval is allowed for emergencies or apparent abandonment. Neither the statute nor the AG guide sets a specific number of days.
"The landlord must arrange with the tenant in advance to enter the apartment to make repairs, to inspect the condition of the apartment, or to show the apartment to prospective tenants, buyers or real estate agents." mass.gov
"to inspect, within the last thirty days of the tenancy or after either party has given notice to the other of intention to terminate the tenancy, the premises for the purpose of determining the amount of damage," malegislature.gov
Notes: M.G.L. c.186 §15B(1)(a) and AG Guide to Landlord-Tenant Rights (2025). Full list of permitted purposes is in clause (i); state sanitary code entry rules not snapshotted.
Last verified 2026-10-20 · Confidence: high · Status: verified · Report a correction