Plymouth County, MA Rental Property Rules: Rent Control (2026)
Rent control rules in Plymouth County, MA, also known as rent stabilization or rent cap ordinances, limit annual rent increases and protect tenants from displacement.
Key Facts
- Rent control
- Banned statewide since 1994
- Statute
- MGL c.40P §4
- Rent increases
- No legal limit
- Town authority
- None
- Applies in
- Brockton, Plymouth, all towns
Summary
Rent control is illegal across every Plymouth County community. Massachusetts voters banned it in 1994 through Question 9, now codified as MGL c.40P §4: no city or town may enact, maintain, or enforce rent control of any kind. Landlords set rent freely.
No city or town may enact, maintain or enforce rent control of any kind, except that any city or town that accepts this chapter may adopt rent control regulation that provides:
Full Breakdown
The 1994 ballot measure ended rent control statewide, and Chapter 40P §4 leaves no room for a local revival. Brockton, Plymouth, and every South Shore town are barred from capping rent, limiting increases, or stabilizing rents. A landlord sets the initial rent at market and raises it to any amount at lease renewal, subject only to the terms written into the lease. A town may adopt regulation solely under narrow voluntary-compliance conditions that also require compensating owners from municipal funds: a path no community uses. Tenants rely on their lease for the rent amount and any escalation.
Violations & Fines
No penalty exists because no rent cap applies. Any local ordinance freezing or capping residential rents is void under Chapter 40P §4 and unenforceable against a landlord.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can any Plymouth County town cap my rent?
How much can my landlord raise the rent?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Plymouth County
Compare Plymouth County to another location·View the Massachusetts rental property rules overview
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