MA · Section 8 / HCV
Public Housing Authority records in Massachusetts
HUD PIH directory records for 130 Public Housing Authorities in Massachusetts, with reported HCV unit counts and contact details. A zero-unit record does not establish an active voucher program or waitlist.
- 130
- PHAs in state
- 102,391
- Authorized HCV units
- 3%
- of all U.S. PHAs
- 30,567
- Total HUD units
Need to narrow the directory first? Search and filter all Massachusetts PHA records in the Finder. The Finder keeps the same HUD directory records while letting you set a reported-unit threshold; it does not show current availability or waitlists.
PHAs in Massachusetts by HUD size band
Exclusive HUD PIH section8_size bands across all 130 agencies in this state, not a restatement of the top-12 chart below.
The largest voucher programs in Massachusetts
Public Housing Authorities ranked by authorized Housing Choice Vouchers
- Exec. Office Housing & Livable Communities
Exec. Office Housing & Livable Communities
23,073 vouchers
- Boston HA
Boston Housing Authority
17,755 vouchers
- Cambridge HA 7,597
Cambridge Housing Authority
7,597 vouchers
- Worcester HA 3,700
Worcester Housing Authority
3,700 vouchers
- Springfield HA 3,463
Springfield Housing Authority
3,463 vouchers
- Fall River HA 2,477
Fall River Housing Authority
2,477 vouchers
- Quincy HA 2,356
Quincy Housing Authority
2,356 vouchers
- Brockton HA 1,946
Brockton Housing Authority
1,946 vouchers
- Holyoke HA 1,938
Holyoke Housing Authority
1,938 vouchers
- New Bedford HA 1,932
New Bedford Housing Authority
1,932 vouchers
- Lynn HA 1,566
Lynn Housing Authority
1,566 vouchers
- Lowell HA 1,405
Lowell Housing Authority
1,405 vouchers
According to HUD PIH's FY2025 PHA directory, Massachusetts ranks #7 of 51 by PHA headcount (130 authorities) and #8 of 51 by authorized HCV (102,391 units). National dual: Texas is #1 of 51 states and DC by PHA headcount (379 authorities) at authorized-HCV rank 3 (183,544 units) ≠ California #1 by authorized HCV (369,815 units) at PHA-count rank 20 (96 authorities).
- 3% of all U.S. PHAs
- #7 of 51 PHA count
- #8 of 51 authorized HCV
- Cross-referenced with HUD FY2026 Payment Standards
What HUD's PIH Record for Massachusetts Tells You
Few states carry as many separately chartered PHA records as Massachusetts: HUD's PIH directory ranks it #7 of 51 by headcount, with 130 records (3% of the 3,780 U.S. total we track) reporting 102,391 authorized Section 8 / HCV units combined. Across all HUD programs (public housing, HCV, and related subsidy streams) those same records report 30,567 total units. 8 of these records (6%) report zero authorized HCV units; that source field does not establish an active voucher program, a waitlist, or an application route.
Payment standards inside MA metros are set at 90–110% of HUD FY2026 Fair Market Rent, cross-referenced in our payment standards directory, so voucher value is metro-specific even within the same state. A city, county, regional, or statewide authority may share the state; the directory does not determine service-area eligibility, waitlist status, or whether an agency is accepting applications, use the source contact details to verify a specific agency's current programs. See the waitlist guide for general federal-program context and the portability guide for federal move rules.
PHAs in Massachusetts
Sorted by reported authorized HCV units, highest first. Many regions carry multiple PHA records (a city PHA, a county PHA, and sometimes a regional authority) - check the source contact details before relying on any single record for a current program, service area, or waitlist.
| # | Public Housing Authority | City | Section 8 units | Total units |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Exec. Office Housing & Livable Communities | - | 23,073 | 0 |
| 2 | Boston Housing Authority | - | 17,755 | 8,723 |
| 3 | Cambridge Housing Authority | - | 7,597 | 52 |
| 4 | Worcester Housing Authority | - | 3,700 | 2,537 |
| 5 | Springfield Housing Authority | - | 3,463 | 1,757 |
| 6 | Fall River Housing Authority | - | 2,477 | 2,040 |
| 7 | Quincy Housing Authority | - | 2,356 | 40 |
| 8 | Brockton Housing Authority | - | 1,946 | 1,626 |
| 9 | Holyoke Housing Authority | - | 1,938 | 754 |
| 10 | New Bedford Housing Authority | - | 1,932 | 1,755 |
| 11 | Lynn Housing Authority | - | 1,566 | 459 |
| 12 | Lowell Housing Authority | - | 1,405 | 1,621 |
| 13 | Salem Housing Authority | - | 1,383 | 39 |
| 14 | Brookline Housing Authority | - | 1,370 | 139 |
| 15 | Somerville Housing Authority | - | 1,355 | 584 |
| 16 | Medford Housing Authority | - | 1,194 | 499 |
| 17 | Taunton Housing Authority | - | 1,165 | 568 |
| 18 | Framingham Housing Authority | - | 1,065 | 167 |
| 19 | Lawrence Housing Authority | - | 1,031 | 1,056 |
| 20 | Malden Housing Authority | - | 983 | 1,195 |
| 21 | Chelmsford Housing Authority | - | 891 | 0 |
| 22 | Northampton Housing Authority | - | 862 | 110 |
| 23 | Gloucester Housing Authority | - | 660 | 89 |
| 24 | Plymouth Housing Authority | - | 640 | 112 |
Showing the top 24 of 130 HUD PHA records in Massachusetts, ordered by reported authorized HCV units. A zero-unit record does not establish an active program or waitlist.
Browse all Massachusetts PHA records in the filterable finder →Checking current program information in Massachusetts
Contact the agency directly to confirm current availability. These guides cover the general federal process:
Nationwide states with similar PHA count or voucher inventory
Two cross-state peer sets for Massachusetts, outside the alphabetically adjacent states below.
Similar PHA headcount
Nearest states by agency count (130 PHAs in MA).
Similar authorized HCV units
Nearest states by summed Section 8 inventory (102,391 units in MA).
- Pennsylvania · 102,787 HCV units
- Ohio · 107,047 HCV units
- Illinois · 112,085 HCV units
- New Jersey · 90,352 HCV units
Higher-rent HUD FMR areas in Massachusetts
These are the highest published FY2026 two-bedroom Fair Market Rents among HUD areas with a PlainVoucher detail page. They are reference amounts, not a local PHA payment-standard promise.
- Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH HUD Metro FMR Area · $2,941/mo for 2 BR
- Barnstable Town, MA MSA · $2,422/mo for 2 BR
- Amherst Town-Northampton, MA MSA · $2,004/mo for 2 BR
- Fitchburg-Leominster, MA HUD Metro FMR Area · $1,749/mo for 2 BR
- Springfield, MA MSA · $1,734/mo for 2 BR
- Pittsfield, MA HUD Metro FMR Area · $1,626/mo for 2 BR
- New Bedford, MA HUD Metro FMR Area · $1,527/mo for 2 BR
HUD FMR and local market-rent context in Massachusetts
Every one of Massachusetts's 7 tracked HUD FMR areas prices above the local market, each published two-bedroom FMR amount sat at least 10% over the 2019–2023 ACS two-bedroom median gross rent.
This is an area-level comparison of HUD FY2026 FMR and Census ACS rent data. It is not an individual PHA payment-standard, availability, eligibility, or waitlist result. Explore the metro comparisons →
Five-year HUD FMR change in Massachusetts
HUD FMR climbed steeply across Massachusetts's 20 tracked areas, among the sharpest five-year moves in the corpus: the median published two-bedroom rent rose 63.3%, from $1,266 in FY2021 to $2,067 in FY2026.
This is a historical HUD reference-rent trend across FMR areas, not a forecast or an individual PHA payment-standard, rent, availability, eligibility, or waitlist result. Check HUD's current FMR documentation →
Nearby states
Massachusetts borders 5 other states in our directory, voucher portability lets a household move across any of these lines:
- Connecticut · CT
- New Hampshire · NH
- New York · NY
- Rhode Island · RI
- Vermont · VT
Source: HUD PIH Open Data (FY25). Payment standards: HUD USER FY2026 FMR. The PHA directory source was consolidated in April 2026. PlainVoucher is not affiliated with HUD, the State of Massachusetts, or any local PHA. Verify with HUD →. See our methodology for how we compile this directory.
Disclaimer. This is general information about Section 8 / HCV administration in Massachusetts. Waitlist status, eligibility, and local preferences are set by each PHA and change frequently. Always contact the specific PHA directly.
What to do with Massachusetts's desk
Massachusetts has 130 HUD PIH directory PHAs in this corpus - use the dual PHA-count vs authorized-HCV read before treating any single agency as the whole state.
- Browse the Massachusetts PHA roster and open individual agency profiles. Massachusetts PHAs
- Look up Fair Market Rent schedules for metros in this state. Payment standards
- Compare national PHA-count vs authorized-HCV dual rankings. Rankings
- Compare land-border neighbors such as Connecticut. Connecticut
State aggregates are directory facts from HUD PIH Open Data. Waitlist status, eligibility, and local preferences are set by each PHA and change frequently.