Massachusetts Rent Increase Laws for Landlords (2026)

Updated September 2026 · Written for self-managing landlords · Not legal advice

In short: Massachusetts has no rent-increase law. To raise the rent you use the notice for changing a month-to-month tenancy, which is 30 days' notice, and there is no cap on the amount.

What Massachusetts law requires

Massachusetts has no statute about raising rent. That surprises most landlords, and it is the single most misreported fact in this area - plenty of sites will quote you a “Massachusetts rent increase notice law” that does not exist.

What Massachusetts does have is the notice required to end or change a month-to-month tenancy, and that is the mechanism you have to use: raising the rent is legally a change of terms. The period is 30 days' notice, in writing, under M.G.L. c. 186, § 12.

Citation: M.G.L. c. 186, § 12 · read the source

The notice is not one number. Notice equal to the interval between rent days, never more than three months. For a monthly tenancy that is one full rental period.

How much can you raise it in Massachusetts?

There is no statutory ceiling. No cap, and local rent control has been prohibited statewide since 1994. A rent increase on a tenancy at will legally ends the old tenancy and offers a new one, so it needs notice equal to a lawful notice to quit.

Only four US jurisdictions cap the size of an increase - California, Oregon, Washington and the District of Columbia. Massachusetts is not one of them, so the amount is a business decision, not a legal one. The usual constraint is practical: a tenant who leaves over an increase costs you a turnover, and a turnover costs more than the increase was worth.

Local rules override this. Local rent control is prohibited by M.G.L. c. 40P.

Can you raise rent mid-lease in Massachusetts?

No. A fixed-term lease fixes the rent for the term. An increase takes effect at renewal, or on a month-to-month tenancy after proper notice. The exception is a lease that contains its own escalation clause agreed at signing.

Serving the notice so it holds up

Most rent increases that fall apart fall apart on the date, not the amount: the notice went out too late, or nobody can prove when it went out. Count the days from delivery, not from the day you wrote it, and keep the proof.

LandlordPro generates the notice against the state's rule, dates it, records when it was sent, and carries the new rent onto the rent roll on the right day so the ledger and the notice agree.

Generate the notice, keep the proof

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Frequently asked questions

How much notice does a landlord have to give to raise rent in Massachusetts?

30 days in writing. Massachusetts has no rent-increase statute, so that is the notice required to change a month-to-month tenancy under M.G.L. c. 186, § 12.

Is there a limit on how much rent can be raised in Massachusetts?

No. Massachusetts sets no cap on the size of an increase. Only California, Oregon, Washington and the District of Columbia cap the amount.

Can rent be raised during a lease in Massachusetts?

No, unless the lease itself provides for it. A fixed-term lease fixes the rent for the term; an increase belongs at renewal or on a month-to-month tenancy after notice.

Does a Massachusetts rent increase notice have to be in writing?

Yes.

Do local rules change this in Massachusetts?

Local rent control is prohibited by M.G.L. c. 40P.