Filings Month Ending 2024 July 31

Residential summary process: Filings Report This report examines cases filed recently before reading, for which outcomes were largely unknown. Search Period Start: 2024-07-01 Search Period End: 2024-07-31 Earliest Case: 2024-07-01 Latest Case: 2024-07-31 Total Cases: 3406 Total Transfers: 72 -- High-level take-aways: Percentage of landlords for whom attorney is optional: 25.3% Of those, percentage pro se: 51.2% Most common cause: Non-payment Least stable municipality/neighborhood: Mount Washington Least stable with 10+ filings: Holyoke Least stable with 100+ filings: Fall River Least stable county: Hampden Cases per day: 113 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 633 18.6% northeast 593 17.4% western 499 14.7% southeast 450 13.2% central 397 11.7% metro_south 359 10.5% malden district 39 1.1% quincy district 34 1.0% lowell district 30 0.9% lynn district 29 0.9% lawrence district 25 0.7% somerville district 25 0.7% cambridge district 24 0.7% brockton district 19 0.6% pittsfield district 19 0.6% haverhill district 17 0.5% waltham district 16 0.5% fall river district 15 0.4% springfield district 15 0.4% woburn district 14 0.4% attleboro district 12 0.4% chelsea district 10 0.3% northern berkshire district 9 0.3% worcester district 9 0.3% dedham district 8 0.2% barnstable district 7 0.2% bmc west roxbury 7 0.2% fallmouth district 7 0.2% holyoke district 7 0.2% salem district 6 0.2% bmc east boston 5 0.1% stoughton district 5 0.1% wrentham district 5 0.1% bmc dorchester 4 0.1% newton district 4 0.1% westfield district 4 0.1% ayer district 3 0.1% brookline district 3 0.1% framingham district 3 0.1% peabody district 3 0.1% plymouth district 3 0.1% taunton district 3 0.1% bmc brighton 2 0.1% bmc roxbury 2 0.1% chicopee district 2 0.1% concord district 2 0.1% gloucester district 2 0.1% new bedford district 2 0.1% orleans district 2 0.1% palmer district 2 0.1% southern berkshire district 2 0.1% wareham district 2 0.1% bmc central 1 0.0% eastern hampshire district 1 0.0% gardner district court 1 0.0% hingham district 1 0.0% milford district 1 0.0% newburyport district 1 0.0% orange district 1 0.0% Party Type (n) Plaintiffs Defendants Corporate Entity 2543 10 Natural Person 863 3396 Total 3406 3406 (%) Plaintiffs Defendants Corporate Entity 74.7% 0.3% Natural Person 25.3% 99.7% Total 100.0% 100.0% Plaintiff Representation (n) Has Attorney Pro Se Total Required 2507 36 2543 Optional 421 442 863 Total 2928 478 3406 (%) Has Attorney Pro Se Total Required 73.6% 1.1% 74.7% Optional 12.4% 13.0% 25.3% Total 86.0% 14.0% 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 1 9 10 Optional 18 3378 3396 Total 19 3387 3406 (%) Has Attorney Pro Se Total Required 0.0% 0.3% 0.3% Optional 0.5% 99.2% 99.7% Total 0.6% 99.4% 100.0% Number of Adults in Households Count Percent 0 109 3.2% 1 2474 72.6% 2 662 19.4% 3 116 3.4% 4 35 1.0% 5 6 0.2% 6 4 0.1% Total 3406 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 2419 71.0% Cause 518 15.2% No Fault 452 13.3% Foreclosure 16 0.5% Unknown/Other 1 0.0% Rate per 100,000 Municipality Residents Count Mount Washington 598 1 Florence 421 4 Chestnut Hill 235 5 Holyoke 168 67 Norwood 157 45 Thorndike 144 1 Southbridge 143 24 West Barnstable 141 4 Fall River 139 124 New Bedford 132 126 East Falmouth 121 7 Randolph 121 39 Dorchester 118 109 Brockton 117 110 Springfield 116 179 Shelburne Falls 113 2 Baldwinville 105 2 Chelsea 102 36 North Adams 102 14 Fitchburg 101 41 New Salem 101 1 Rockport 100 7 Hyannis 99 14 Lynn 97 88 Turners Falls 97 4 Chicopee 92 51 Lowell 91 97 Dalton 88 6 North Oxford 88 2 Webster 83 14 Sunderland 81 3 Marlborough 80 31 Charlemont 78 1 Hyde Park 77 26 Jamaica Plain 77 29 North Andover 77 22 Revere 77 40 Mattapan 76 28 Worcester 76 139 Whitman 75 11 Chester 74 1 Gardner 74 15 Lawrence 74 57 Malden 74 44 West Springfield 73 21 Roxbury 70 42 Feeding Hills 68 8 Greenfield 68 12 Rockland 68 12 Charlestown 65 11 Haverhill 65 40 Pittsfield 64 29 Otis 62 1 Salem 62 26 Belchertown 61 9 Canton 60 13 Phillipston 59 1 Allston 58 17 Buzzards Bay 58 2 Framingham 58 40 Quincy 58 54 Easthampton 56 9 Shutesbury 56 1 Waltham 56 34 Shirley 55 4 Stoughton 55 15 Taunton 55 31 Tyngsborough 53 6 Athol 51 6 Newton Center 51 2 Milford 50 14 South Deerfield 48 1 South Easton 48 5 Norton 47 9 Woburn 47 18 Attleborough 45 20 Bedford 45 6 Danvers 45 12 Forestdale 45 2 Northampton 45 13 Dorchester Center 44 41 Roslindale 44 13 Tewksbury 44 13 Abington 43 7 Everett 43 18 Middleborough 43 10 Swampscott 43 6 Westborough 43 8 Cambridge 41 44 Marstons Mills 41 2 Eastham 40 2 Marion 40 2 Peabody 40 21 Braintree 39 14 Indian Orchard 39 4 Leominster 39 16 Somerville 39 30 West Roxbury 39 12 Weymouth 39 21 Brighton 38 17 Orange 38 3 Bridgewater 37 10 East Boston 37 15 Holbrook 37 4 Dedham 36 9 Oxford 36 5 Plainville 36 3 Wellfleet 36 1 Marshfield 35 9 Monson 35 3 Rehoboth 34 4 South Yarmouth 34 4 Dracut 33 10 Hardwick 33 1 Methuen 33 16 Shrewsbury 33 12 Chatham 32 2 Fiskdale 32 1 Lanesborough 32 1 Palmer 32 4 Wakefield 32 8 Fairhaven 31 5 Franklin 31 10 Kingston 31 4 Amesbury 30 5 Mansfield 30 7 Medford 30 17 Foxborough 29 5 Hull 29 3 Lunenburg 29 3 Maynard 29 3 Burlington 28 7 Great Barrington 28 2 Winthrop 28 5 Sagamore Beach 27 1 Somerset 27 5 South Dennis 27 1 West Brookfield 27 1 Saugus 26 7 Waban 25 2 Gloucester 24 7 North Attleborough 24 7 Salisbury 24 2 Westfield 24 10 Adams 23 2 Medway 23 3 Roxbury Crossing 23 14 Centerville 22 3 Oak Bluffs 22 1 Pembroke 22 4 Agawam 21 6 Mashpee 21 3 North Chelmsford 21 2 Beverly 20 8 Brewster 20 2 Brookline 20 12 Carlisle 20 1 East Weymouth 20 11 Hopkinton 20 3 Hudson 20 4 North Reading 20 3 South Boston 20 7 Acushnet 19 2 Hampden 19 1 Newtonville 19 1 Westport 19 3 Lakeville 18 2 North Billerica 18 2 Rochdale 18 2 West Yarmouth 18 1 Wrentham 18 2 Carver 17 2 Dudley 17 2 Rowley 17 1 Southampton 17 1 Belmont 16 4 Lee 16 1 Orleans 16 1 Topsfield 16 1 Wellesley Hills 16 5 Amherst 15 6 Boston 15 96 East Taunton 15 1 Falmouth 15 5 Ipswich 15 2 Millbury 15 2 Natick 15 5 Plymouth 15 9 Arlington 14 6 Bradford 14 2 Chelmsford 14 5 Hanover 14 2 Ludlow 14 3 Raynham 14 2 South Weymouth 14 8 Wellesley 14 4 West Bridgewater 14 1 West Newton 14 2 Whitinsville 14 1 Hingham 13 3 Onset 13 3 Bellingham 12 2 Billerica 12 5 Lancaster 12 1 Millis 12 1 Northbridge 12 2 South Attleboro 12 1 Williamstown 12 1 Littleton 11 1 Milton 11 3 Sharon 11 2 Sudbury 11 2 Sutton 11 1 Townsend 11 1 Auburndale 10 1 Marblehead 10 2 Southwick 10 1 Sturbridge 10 1 Acton 9 2 Andover 9 3 East Wareham 9 2 Norwell 9 1 Wareham 9 2 Watertown 9 3 Winchendon 9 1 Dartmouth 8 3 Lynnfield 8 1 North Dartmouth 8 2 Spencer 8 1 Walpole 8 2 West Groton 8 1 Dennis 7 1 North Easton 7 1 Northborough 7 1 Seekonk 7 1 Ashland 6 1 East Longmeadow 6 1 Westwood 6 1 Concord 5 1 Grafton 5 1 South Hadley 5 1 E. Boston 4 2 Reading 4 1 Stoneham 4 1 Westford 4 1 Wilmington 4 1 Lexington 3 1 Needham 3 1 Newton 2 2 South Dartmouth 2 1 Newton Lower Falls 1 1 North Weymouth 1 1 (not given) 0 268 span 0 10 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 Hampden 507 361 Plymouth 484 209 Bristol 437 360 Berkshire 359 58 Norfolk 346 295 Essex 305 336 Barnstable 300 58 Worcester 288 321 Suffolk 283 560 Franklin 265 28 Hampshire 233 43 Middlesex 213 498 Dukes 24 1 Nantucket 0 0 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/.