Filings Month Ending 2023 August 31

Residential summary process: Filings Report This report examines cases filed recently before reading, for which outcomes were largely unknown. Search Period Start: 2023-08-01 Search Period End: 2023-08-31 Earliest Case: 2023-08-01 Latest Case: 2023-08-31 Total Cases: 3250 Total Transfers: 65 -- High-level take-aways: Percentage of landlords for whom attorney is optional: 27.0% Of those, percentage pro se: 55.5% Most common cause: Non-payment Least stable municipality/neighborhood: Southbridge Least stable with 10+ filings: Southbridge Least stable with 100+ filings: Dorchester Least stable county: Plymouth Cases per day: 108 Housing crisis baseline max cases per day (UCL): 130 Housing crisis baseline min cases per day (LCL): 44 The number of filings this period is not statistically different from the pre-pandemic housing crisis baseline. -- Courts (n) Count Percent eastern 609 18.7% northeast 538 16.6% western 502 15.4% central 461 14.2% southeast 365 11.2% metro_south 289 8.9% malden district 56 1.7% lynn district 41 1.3% brockton district 35 1.1% quincy district 27 0.8% pittsfield district 25 0.8% chelsea district 22 0.7% lowell district 17 0.5% waltham district 16 0.5% bmc east boston 15 0.5% framingham district 15 0.5% salem district 15 0.5% attleboro district 14 0.4% haverhill district 14 0.4% new bedford district 13 0.4% somerville district 13 0.4% fall river district 12 0.4% woburn district 11 0.3% cambridge district 9 0.3% wrentham district 9 0.3% bmc dorchester 8 0.2% lawrence district 8 0.2% springfield district 8 0.2% barnstable district 6 0.2% bmc west roxbury 6 0.2% dedham district 6 0.2% northern berkshire district 6 0.2% ayer district 5 0.2% westfield district 5 0.2% stoughton district 4 0.1% edgartown district 3 0.1% fallmouth district 3 0.1% gloucester district 3 0.1% milford district 3 0.1% palmer district 3 0.1% peabody district 3 0.1% taunton district 3 0.1% bmc brighton 2 0.1% concord district 2 0.1% natick district 2 0.1% newton district 2 0.1% bmc central 1 0.0% brookline district 1 0.0% chicopee district 1 0.0% eastern hampshire district 1 0.0% fitchburg district 1 0.0% greenfield district 1 0.0% hingham district 1 0.0% holyoke district 1 0.0% nantucket district 1 0.0% newburyport district 1 0.0% orange district 1 0.0% orleans district 1 0.0% plymouth district 1 0.0% southern berkshire district 1 0.0% uxbridge district 1 0.0% wareham district 1 0.0% Party Type (n) Plaintiffs Defendants Corporate Entity 2373 8 Natural Person 877 3242 Total 3250 3250 (%) Plaintiffs Defendants Corporate Entity 73.0% 0.2% Natural Person 27.0% 99.8% Total 100.0% 100.0% Plaintiff Representation (n) Has Attorney Pro Se Total Required 2335 38 2373 Optional 390 487 877 Total 2725 525 3250 (%) Has Attorney Pro Se Total Required 71.8% 1.2% 73.0% Optional 12.0% 15.0% 27.0% Total 83.8% 16.2% 100.0% Defendant Representation Important: Defendants will not have an attorney known to the plaintiff at time of filing unless this is an ongoing matter. 100% pro se is to be expected in all filing reports except to the extent time passes between filing and staff review. See outcomes report for final assessment. (n) Has Attorney Pro Se Total Required 2 6 8 Optional 32 3210 3242 Total 34 3216 3250 (%) Has Attorney Pro Se Total Required 0.1% 0.2% 0.2% Optional 1.0% 98.8% 99.8% Total 1.0% 99.0% 100.0% Number of Adults in Households Count Percent 0 121 3.7% 1 2415 74.3% 2 571 17.6% 3 98 3.0% 4 31 1.0% 5 6 0.2% 6 5 0.2% 7 2 0.1% 10 1 0.0% Total 3250 100.0% Note: Households may appear with zero adults due to clerical delay entering known defendants, identity protection obscuring known defendants (e.g., 42 USC Sections 13701 through 1404 Violence Against Women Act), or no adult defendants (e.g., abandonment of minors). Initiating Action Count Percent Non-payment 2253 69.3% Cause 507 15.6% No Fault 470 14.5% Foreclosure 19 0.6% Unknown/Other 1 0.0% Rate per 100,000 Municipality Residents Count Southbridge 185 31 Chestnut Hill 141 3 Newtonville 134 7 Dorchester 126 116 New Bedford 125 119 Indian Orchard 109 11 Brockton 108 102 Florence 105 1 Vineyard Haven 105 2 Gardner 103 21 Mattapan 101 37 Westborough 98 18 Turners Falls 97 4 Everett 95 40 Ayer 94 7 Revere 92 48 Norwood 90 26 Fitchburg 89 36 Fall River 87 78 Lynn 87 79 Nahant 87 3 Worcester 87 158 Athol 86 10 Framingham 86 59 Allston 85 25 Chelsea 85 30 South Dennis 81 3 Pittsfield 80 36 Royalston 79 1 West Chatham 78 1 Springfield 77 118 Warren 77 4 Randolph 71 23 Berlin 69 2 East Falmouth 69 4 Leominster 68 28 Stoughton 66 18 Roxbury 65 39 Webster 65 11 East Boston 64 26 Marlborough 64 25 Hyannis 63 9 Orange 63 5 Rockland 62 11 Taunton 62 35 Lowell 61 65 South Lancaster 61 1 Danvers 60 16 Colrain 59 1 Maynard 59 6 Adams 58 5 North Adams 58 8 Middleborough 56 13 Erving 55 1 Quincy 55 51 Sagamore Beach 55 2 Salem 55 23 Peabody 54 28 Milford 53 15 Chicopee 52 29 Norton 52 10 Saugus 52 14 Dorchester Center 51 47 Attleborough 50 22 Truro 49 1 Malden 48 29 Bernardston 46 1 West Wareham 46 1 South Hadley 45 8 Franklin 44 14 South Grafton 44 2 Cambridge 43 46 South Boston 41 14 Boxborough 40 2 Marion 40 2 Braintree 39 14 South Easton 39 4 Hyde Park 38 13 Beverly 37 15 Holyoke 37 15 Jamaica Plain 37 14 West Yarmouth 37 2 East Weymouth 35 19 Foxborough 35 6 Northborough 35 5 Plympton 35 1 Roxbury Crossing 35 21 West Barnstable 35 1 Pocasset 34 1 South Yarmouth 34 4 Spencer 34 4 Three Rivers 34 1 Watertown 34 11 Bridgewater 33 9 Provincetown 33 1 Auburndale 32 3 Sturbridge 32 3 Abington 31 5 Dennis Port 31 1 East Taunton 31 2 Kingston 31 4 Swansea 31 5 Woburn 31 12 Cheshire 30 1 Cotuit 30 1 Sheffield 30 1 Charlestown 29 5 E. Boston 29 12 Melrose 29 8 Dedham 28 7 Greenfield 28 5 Hanover 28 4 Lakeville 28 3 West Springfield 28 8 Whitinsville 28 2 Winthrop 28 5 Acton 27 6 Canton 27 6 East Wareham 27 6 Gloucester 27 8 Sagamore 27 1 West Brookfield 27 1 Westford 27 6 Westwood 27 4 Weymouth 27 15 Wrentham 27 3 Haverhill 26 16 Newton Centre 26 1 Tyngsborough 26 3 Waltham 26 16 Williamstown 25 2 Edgartown 24 1 Plainville 24 2 Plymouth 24 14 Walpole 24 6 Douglas 23 2 Bedford 22 3 Oak Bluffs 22 1 Sharon 22 4 Uxbridge 22 3 Arlington 21 9 Mansfield 21 5 North Chelmsford 21 2 Northampton 21 6 Southwick 21 2 Brewster 20 2 Brighton 20 9 Tewksbury 20 6 Whitman 20 3 Hanson 19 2 Lawrence 19 15 Lenox 19 1 Lunenburg 19 2 Medford 19 11 Rochester 19 1 Somerville 19 15 Winchendon 19 2 Brookline 18 11 Holbrook 18 2 Dudley 17 2 North Attleborough 17 5 Roslindale 17 5 Southampton 17 1 Ashburnham 16 1 Boston 16 100 Orleans 16 1 Charlton 15 2 Falmouth 15 5 Hudson 15 3 Medway 15 2 North Easton 15 2 Wayland 15 2 Clinton 14 2 Great Barrington 14 1 Mashpee 14 2 Raynham 14 2 Swampscott 14 2 Westfield 14 6 Cohasset 13 1 Duxbury 13 2 Needham 13 4 South Weymouth 13 7 Stoneham 13 3 West Roxbury 13 4 Westminster 13 1 Auburn 12 2 Belmont 12 3 Millis 12 1 Natick 12 4 Rutland 12 1 Salisbury 12 1 Grafton 11 2 Holden 11 2 Littleton 11 1 Agawam 10 3 Dracut 10 3 Southborough 10 1 Ware 10 1 Billerica 9 4 Hingham 9 2 Hull 9 1 Leicester 9 1 Lexington 9 3 Ludlow 9 2 Nantucket 9 1 North Billerica 9 1 Wareham 9 2 Carver 8 1 Feeding Hills 8 1 Medfield 8 1 North Dartmouth 8 2 Palmer 8 1 Pepperell 8 1 Rehoboth 8 1 Shrewsbury 8 3 Wakefield 8 2 Weston 8 1 Centerville 7 1 Ipswich 7 1 Millbury 7 1 Milton 7 2 Oxford 7 1 Ashland 6 1 Belchertown 6 1 Bellingham 6 1 East Longmeadow 6 1 Fairhaven 6 1 Methuen 6 3 North Reading 6 1 Northbridge 6 1 Westport 6 1 Amherst 5 2 Bourne 5 1 Chelmsford 5 2 Marblehead 5 1 Pembroke 5 1 Sudbury 5 1 Onset 4 1 Sandwich 4 1 Andover 3 1 Marshfield 3 1 North Andover 3 1 Wellesley 3 1 Wellesley Hills 3 1 South Dartmouth 2 1 (not given) 0 550 span 0 2 Rate per 100,000 residents based on 2010 census. Municipalities do not appear if no evictions filed. Where neighborhoods are commonly recognized as municipalities, data appears under the neighborhood rather than the legal entity (e.g., "Roxbury" is separate from "Boston".) Where municipalities have alternate spellings (e.g., Marlboro for Marlborough), totals appear under the long form. Efforts are made to correct clerical errors in the court database, but clerical errors may appear. Rate per 100,000 County Renter Households Count Plymouth 444 192 Bristol 358 295 Worcester 345 385 Berkshire 340 55 Norfolk 299 255 Suffolk 288 570 Hampden 278 198 Barnstable 233 45 Essex 206 227 Middlesex 186 434 Franklin 161 17 Hampshire 108 20 Dukes 97 4 Nantucket 28 1 Rate per 100,000 renter households based on 2019 ACS. Counties appear even if no evictions filed. -- Data Sources (report errors to hello@masslandlords.net): County Data Households Percent Renters Barnstable 96,509 20.0% Berkshire 53,792 30.0% Bristol 220,528 37.3% Dukes 18,146 22.6% Essex 297,898 36.9% Franklin 30,927 34.1% Hampden 179,970 39.5% Hampshire 60,002 30.7% Middlesex 612,366 38.1% Nantucket 11,399 30.8% Norfolk 269,717 31.6% Plymouth 191,041 22.6% Suffolk 309,945 63.7% Worcester 316,162 35.2% County Households: 2019 ACS TableID S1101 County Households and Renters, Dukes and Nantucket: https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/dukescountymassachusetts County Households and Renters, Large Counties: https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=S11&g=0400000US25.050000&d=ACS%201-Year%20Estimates%20Subject%20Tables&tid=ACSST1Y2019.S1101&hidePreview=true Dukes County Renters: https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/dukescountymassachusetts Nantucket County Renters: https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/nantucketcountymassachusetts -- Methodology Publicly available records at MassCourts.org are read fully manually at two intervals: 1.) For a filings report, once within approximately one week of filing; 2.) For an outcomes report, once again approximately 12 to 18 months after filing. Cases are searched by 'case type' = 'summary process', party type = 'plaintiff' within date ranges, typically weekly. MassCourts.org displays matches, not cases. X plaintiffs on a single case result in X separate matches. Cases are manually de-duplicated. Where the number of matches exceeds the number displayed (e.g., 'Displaying 100 of 257 total matches.'), date ranges are reduced until all cases may be viewed. If the date range cannot be reduced (i.e., is one day) but matches still exceed the display limit of 100, then two additional passes are taken. First, municipalities are filtered in stages. Second, to capture cases with no municipality entered, the search switches from 'case type' to 'case number', guessing the missing numbers assuming serialized entry. This method results in 'matches' reconciled to case counts. This effort costs more than 1 FTE. Summary spreadsheets are produced by copying exactly what is read. The spreadsheets are processed using proprietary software. Repeated analyses of local spreadsheets does not burden the MassCourts servers. The software is developed using best practices for revision control and regression testing. Limitations: Data are snapshots. As such, we cannot track individual cases over time or produce real-time reports. MassLandlords does not have access to court databases beyond what is published in human readable form at MassCourts.org. As of this report, MassLandlords staff were not considering information available to attorneys (e.g., the contents of notices, discovery, evidence, etc.) but not available to the general public. All data presented here are readily verifiable at MassCourts.org without special permission. Information is not independently verified outside of the court record. For instance, clerical errors in address, omissions of a defendant, etc. are not readily verifiable. As this process matures, reporting algorithms may change. Transfers are counted as new cases. Clerical differences between original case and transfer (e.g., middle initial included then dropped; defendant dropped on transfer; street address spelling changed) as well as the potential for indefinite circular transferring (e.g., foreclosure cases moving between housing, land, and/or superior courts) make it very difficult to programmatically identify continuing matters. Methodology changes: 2022-03: Where docket history shows judgment and/or execution, but case has not been disposed, infer judgment and/or execution. 2022-05: Correct counting error in 'By prevailing party' section where agreement for judgment renders prevailing party unknown. Rows now sum to total. 2023-01: We now report dispositions on the basis of the last disposition found in a docket. Previously we were using a prioritized keyword match, which produced inaccurate results for complex cases. -- When Citing This Work, Please Credit: MassLandlords, Inc. Available online at https://masslandlords.net/policy/eviction-data/.