Massachusetts lease agreement requirements: what landlords must include
A Massachusetts lease has to stay within the upfront payment limits in M.G.L. c. 186, s. 15B. It also needs deposit receipts, a statement of condition, and the lead paint notice, and it must leave out terms the statutes void. Most landlord trouble in the state starts with the deposit rules, because one missed step can cost the right to keep any of the deposit.
Section 15B(1)(b) lists everything a landlord can require at or before the start of a tenancy. The list applies to money paid to the landlord or to an agent of the landlord, which means a broker the landlord hired cannot require the tenant to pay a fee on top of it. The section reads: "no lessor or agent of the lessor may require a tenant or prospective tenant to pay, to the lessor or to an agent of the lessor, any amount in excess of the following."
| Upfront charge | Maximum | Paperwork the landlord owes |
|---|---|---|
| First month's rent | One full month | None beyond the lease |
| Last month's rent | One month, at the same rate as the first | Receipt at payment and a yearly interest statement |
| Security deposit | One month's rent | Signed receipt, statement of condition, and bank receipt |
| Key and lock | Purchase and installation cost | None listed in the statute |
Run the numbers on a $2,400 apartment. The most a landlord can collect at signing is $2,400 for the first month, $2,400 for the last month, a $2,400 security deposit, and the actual cost of a new lock, say $85. That totals $7,285. A pet deposit, application fee, or move-in fee has no place on the list.
The deposit then triggers a chain of deadlines. Say the tenant pays the deposit on August 15 and the tenancy starts September 1. The landlord owes a signed receipt on August 15, showing the amount, the date, the name of the person receiving it, and a description of the unit. The statement of condition is due within 10 days after the tenancy starts or on receipt of the deposit, whichever is later, so September 11 here. Its first page must carry a set warning in 12-point bold type telling the tenant to return it within 15 days. The deposit must sit in a separate, interest-bearing account in a bank located in Massachusetts. Within 30 days of payment, which is September 14, the tenant must get a receipt naming the bank, its location, the account number, and the amount.
Interest runs at 5 percent a year or the lower rate the bank actually paid, starting on the first day of the tenancy. If the bank pays 1 percent, the tenant on a $2,400 deposit earns $24 for the year, paid at each anniversary or offered as a credit against the next rent. Rent collected in advance for the last month earns interest on the same terms, and the landlord must give a receipt for it that also tells the tenant to leave a forwarding address. At move-out, the landlord has 30 days to return the deposit, less lawful deductions. Any damage deduction needs a sworn, itemized list with estimates, bills, or receipts. A landlord who skips the bank account, misses the itemized list, or misses the 30-day return forfeits the right to keep any of the deposit. Under 15B(7), some of those failures also carry damages of three times the amount owed. The landlord must also keep a record of each deposit and show it to a tenant on request during business hours. A wrongful refusal entitles the tenant to the immediate return of the deposit with interest.
Lease terms Massachusetts law voids
Several clauses that appear in out-of-state lease forms will not hold up in Massachusetts. A lease cannot charge interest or a late penalty until rent is 30 days overdue, under 15B(1)(c). It cannot give the landlord a general right of entry. Section 15B(1)(a) limits entry during the lease to inspecting, making repairs, showing the unit, and a few listed situations such as a court order. Any lease provision that conflicts with 15B, and any tenant waiver of it, is void under 15B(8).
Two shorter sections add more. Section 15D covers a landlord who agreed orally to sign a lease and then got the tenant's signature. That landlord must deliver a fully signed copy within 30 days or face a fine of up to $300, and a lease clause waiving the duty is void. Section 15E bars an owner sued by a tenant or occupant injured by a common-area defect from arguing the defect existed when the unit was rented, if the defect violates the local building code. A waiver of that rule is also void.
Lead paint disclosure comes from a different chapter. M.G.L. c. 111, s. 197A(d)(2) requires the owner to give the prospective tenant three things before the tenancy agreement is signed. The first is the standard notification materials and form prepared by the state's Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program. The second is the most recent lead inspection report, letter of interim control, letter of compliance, or abatement plan for the unit and common areas. The third is two copies of a certification that the tenant received them. The statute allows that certification to appear as a provision in the written lease.
Ending a tenancy follows chapter 186 as well. Under section 12, a tenancy at will ends with written notice equal to the interval between rent days or 30 days, whichever is longer. For nonpayment, sections 11 and 12 allow a 14-day written notice to quit, and a notice to an at-will tenant must include the statutory language about the tenant's right to cure. Build the deposit receipts, condition statement, and lead certification into your Massachusetts residential lease packet so each one goes out on the right day. The deposit rules in 15B reach any lease of residential real property. A landlord renting a single room under a Massachusetts room rental agreement faces the same caps, receipts, and 30-day return deadline.
Sources
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a Massachusetts landlord charge a separate pet deposit?
Not as an extra upfront payment. Section 15B caps the security deposit at one month's rent, so any amount meant to cover pet damage has to fit inside that single deposit and follow the same receipt, bank account, and return rules.
How long must a Massachusetts landlord keep security deposit records?
Two years from the end of the tenancy. The record must describe any damage, the date the tenancy ended, repairs with their dates and costs, and copies of the receipts and condition statements given to the tenant.
What happens if a landlord never gives the lead paint notice?
Under M.G.L. c. 111, s. 197A, the owner is liable for all damages caused by the failure and faces a penalty of up to $1,000. For landlords in trade or commerce, the violation also counts as an unfair and deceptive practice under chapter 93A.
Jill Stradley covers landlord-tenant law, lease agreements, and the fine print that renters and landlords skip until something goes wrong. Her goal is to make state-specific rental law readable for people who aren't lawyers and don't want to become one. She lives in a rental herself and considers that a professional asset.
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