Housing

BOSTON – On the heels of last week’s unprecedented state Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) decision removing a widely supported income-tax reduction measure from the November ballot, a new Pioneer Institute study finds that Massachusetts taxes a far larger share of lower- and middle-income households' earnings compared to red and blue competitor states. The Commonwealth's personal exemption remains at just $4,400 for single filers and $8,800 for married couples filing jointly—levels that have not changed since 2008 and have declined in inflation-adjusted value by 55 percent. If rates had been adjusted for inflation, they would have saved tax filers an additional $861 million in 2025. Current rates shield far less income from Massachusetts taxpayers than many competing and neighboring states.

Boston – A new Pioneer Institute report finds that a mismatch between who lives in Massachusetts and the housing being built is squeezing two generations at once: young families who cannot get into a house, and seniors who cannot downsize. Local land use rules often make it difficult to build small, reasonably priced, and low-maintenance homes, despite a growing need for them as the population ages and average household sizes continue to shrink.

This edition of The House Call explores new Census Bureau data showing how building permit activity declined in Massachusetts between 2024 and 2025. It also highlights a court case in Somerville over whether, in at least some contexts, prevailing wage standards should apply to off-site modular construction.

Welcome to the May edition of The House Call. This edition breaks down results from the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce Young Residents Survey, including the appetite for legislative action on housing costs, and previews our new AI-enabled local land use regulation...

This April edition of The House Call discusses a federal bill that, if passed, would be the most comprehensive supply-focused federal housing legislation enacted in decades. It also explains Massachusetts’ starter home zoning district program and its potential implementation challenges.

This month’s edition of The House Call discusses results from a state survey of municipalities on accessory dwelling unit permitting activity. It also describes the debate over whether building codes should be reformed to allow some apartment buildings to contain only one staircase.

This edition of The House Call describes a legal complaint alleging that Cambridge’s inclusionary zoning ordinance, which requires set-asides for below-market-rate housing in new development, is a regulatory taking under the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution. It also describes a number of actions the Commonwealth...

This edition of The House Call explores the 2025 update to Massachusetts’ Subsidized Housing Inventory, showing a spike in the number of communities that have at least 10% of their housing stocks in the Inventory. It also explains the housing-related ballot questions that could...

BOSTON – Even after statewide legalization in 2024, production of accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in Massachusetts remains far from that of other states due to local zoning and permitting practices that continue to discourage development, according to a new Pioneer Institute study. 

Our November edition of The House Call covers the dwindling availability of homes on the market in Massachusetts since 2019, even as many other states have seen full recoveries in the number of market listings after COVID. It discusses the implications of lower home availability for buyers and sellers alike and identifies a couple of major solutions.