What does the Massachusetts lead law require of landlords when a child under six moves in?
In Massachusetts, when a child under six lives in a unit with dangerous levels of lead in paint, plaster or other accessible surfaces, the owner must abate or contain it, whether or not anyone asked. A licensed inspector issues either a letter of interim control, good for one year, or a letter of full compliance. You may not refuse to rent to a family to avoid this, and a state tax credit covers up to $3,000 per unit of the cost.
The duty, in one paragraph
Section 197 of chapter 111 says that whenever a child under six resides in premises where paint, plaster or other accessible structural material contains dangerous levels of lead, the owner "shall abate or contain" it. This goes further than the federal disclosure rule, which only requires you to tell tenants what you know. Here the presence of a young child creates a duty to fix, and the federal disclosure still applies too (see lead-based paint disclosure for rentals).
When a building with lead hazards changes hands and a child under six lives there or will, the new owner has 90 days to bring it into compliance.
Two ways to comply
| Interim control | Full compliance | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Urgent hazards controlled under an emergency lead management plan | All lead hazards abated or contained to the state standard |
| Paper you get | Letter of interim control from a licensed inspector | Letter of full compliance from a licensed inspector |
| How long it lasts | One year; may be renewed once for another year after reinspection | While it is in effect, you owe reasonable care to keep the unit compliant |
| Where it leads | Full compliance is the required end goal | Done, with a duty of reasonable care |
| If a child is already lead poisoned | Only with a waiver from the department | Required path |
Source: M.G.L. c. 111, section 197.
Interim control lets you deal first with the urgent items, such as chipping or peeling paint and heavy lead dust, and fix structural causes like roof leaks and failing windows, while you plan the full job.
Why the letter matters: liability
Under section 199, an owner who fails to comply is liable for all damages to a child under six who is poisoned. An owner covered by a letter of interim control or a letter of full compliance is not strictly liable, but still owes reasonable care to keep the unit in that condition. An owner who is notified of lead hazards, or ordered to fix them, and willfully does not, faces punitive damages of three times the actual damages.
In practice this makes the inspector's letter one of the most important documents in a Massachusetts rental file. Keep it with the unit, note its expiry if it is interim, and set the reinspection before it lapses.
What you cannot do
Section 199A makes it an unlawful practice to refuse to rent, or to discriminate in the terms of a rental, because the unit has or may have lead, or because renting would trigger the lead law. Refusing to rent to families with children is not compliance, and neither is refusing to renew or evicting a family with children; the statute says such evictions also violate other consumer and tenancy laws. A listing that says "no children" or "not deleaded, no kids" is the kind of thing this section is aimed at.
The state tax credit, worked through
Chapter 62, section 6(e) gives an owner who pays to bring a pre-1978 unit into full compliance a credit equal to the cost or $3,000 per unit, whichever is less. Work done under an emergency lead management plan and letter of interim control earns half the cost or $1,000 per unit, whichever is less, and that amount counts toward the same $3,000 maximum. Window replacement for lead abatement counts. The credit requires that a licensed inspector established the lead and that you then got the letter.
Example a made-up owner of a 1920s six unit building in Worcester learns a two-year-old has moved into unit 2. Interim control work costs $2,400: half is $1,200, so the credit is capped at $1,000. The next year full deleading of the unit costs $8,000. The credit for that work is the lesser of $8,000 or $3,000, but $1,000 of the $3,000 per-unit maximum is already used, so the additional credit is $2,000. Total credit for unit 2: $1,000 plus $2,000, or $3,000, against total costs of $10,400.
Ask your tax preparer how the credit applies to your return and whether the costs are also deductible or depreciable. The rules for an LLC or a partnership that owns the building may differ.
Where DoorKeeping fits
Store each unit's inspector letters in the property's documents in DoorKeeping, and open a work order for the interim control or deleading job, sent to your licensed deleader by link. The deleader's invoices are read and coded into that building's books with the bills attached, which is what your tax preparer needs to claim the credit. DoorKeeping does not give legal or tax advice, so check the details with the Massachusetts Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program or your attorney.
Sources
- Massachusetts General Laws chapter 111, section 197, read Oct 30, 2026
- Massachusetts General Laws chapter 111, section 199, read Oct 30, 2026
- Massachusetts General Laws chapter 111, section 199A, read Oct 30, 2026
- Massachusetts General Laws chapter 62, section 6 (lead paint credit at subsection (e)), read Oct 30, 2026
Questions
- Do I have to delead my rental in Massachusetts?
- If a child under six lives in a unit with dangerous levels of lead, yes: you must abate or contain it and get a letter of interim control or full compliance from a licensed inspector.
- How long is a Massachusetts letter of interim control good for?
- One year from issuance, and it may be renewed once for one more year after reinspection. Full compliance is the required goal.
- Can a Massachusetts landlord refuse to rent to a family because of lead paint?
- No. Refusing to rent, or treating a family differently, because the unit has lead or would trigger the lead law is an unlawful practice under chapter 111, section 199A.
- How much is the Massachusetts lead paint tax credit?
- For full compliance, the cost or $3,000 per unit, whichever is less. For interim control, half the cost or $1,000 per unit, which counts toward the same $3,000.