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Despite vouchers, low-income tenants struggle to find landlords willing to rent to them

nepm.org · 1,253 words · saved by 1 readers

In today’s market, where available housing is scarce, landlords have their choice of tenants. Housing advocates say they get a lot of complaints about landlords not renting to low-income tenants.

Western Massachusetts is currently in what’s known as a "seller’s market," where available housing is scarce, so sellers can keep rents high and have more choice in tenants. Although people who can’t afford the going rate can apply for state or federal housing vouchers, the wait can be years, and getting one is no guarantee they'll find a place to rent. Housing advocates, like Maureen St. Cyr from Mass Fair Housing, say they get a lot of complaints about landlords not renting to low-income and Section 8 tenants. “Some people see vouchers as sort of being tied to other protected classes like ra

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