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H 1492

An Act expanding the definition of affordable housing to include manufactured homes

194th Legislature (2025-2026) Introduced by David DeCoste

Expands 40B to count 50% of manufactured-home units toward a town's affordable housing total and exempts those units from deed restrictions, boosting SHI metrics.

Hearing rescheduled to 06/04/2025 from 09:00 AM-01:00 PM in B-2
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Bill Summary · H 1492

Summary of H 1492: An Act expanding the definition of affordable housing to include manufactured homes

Overview

H 1492, introduced February 27, 2025 by Representative David F. DeCoste, seeks to broaden Massachusetts’ definition of affordable housing to explicitly include manufactured homes and to modify deed restriction rules for affordable units. The bill is currently being considered in the House, with a hearing rescheduled for June 4, 2025.

What the bill would change

1) Expanded definition of affordable housing (Section 1)

  • Amends Section 20 of Chapter 40B (the 40B "affordable housing" framework) by replacing the existing definition of “Low or moderate income housing” with a new definition that ties affordability to programs subsidizing construction of such housing.
  • Crucially, the bill provides that 50 percent of the homes in a manufactured housing community (as defined by Section 32Q of Chapter 140) shall be counted toward a city or town’s affordable housing threshold.
  • These manufactured-home units would be documented in the Subsidized Housing Inventory maintained by the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) to count toward the municipality’s affordable housing metrics.

2) Deed restriction exemption for affordable housing (Section 2)

  • Adds a new Section 31, “Affordable Housing Deed Restriction Exemption.”
  • Provides that, notwithstanding any other law, no affordable housing unit in a municipality’s inventory shall be subject to a deed restriction.
  • Applies to all affordable housing units, explicitly including manufactured homes as defined in Section 32Q of Chapter 140.

Who is affected

  • Massachusetts municipalities with 40B affordable housing inventories (the SHI), and their housing officers.
  • Developers and operators of manufactured home communities.
  • Owners of affordable housing units within municipal inventories.
  • The Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD, via the SHI).

Procedural and timeline details

  • Introduced: February 27, 2025.
  • Referred to the House Committee on Housing (February 27, 2025).
  • Hearing originally scheduled; current update shows a rescheduled hearing for June 4, 2025 (06:00 PM in some listings; the notice indicates 06/04/2025, 9:00 AM–1:00 PM in a specified committee room).
  • Related actions: Senate concurrence noted; similar matter previously filed as House No. 1313 in the 2023-2024 session. HD 2671 replaces the prior version.

Key implications and considerations

  • Expanding to count 50% of manufactured-home community units toward affordable housing could materially increase a municipality’s reported affordable stock without necessarily requiring new construction.
  • The deed restriction exemption moves away from long-term affordability protections for these units, potentially affecting resale controls and programmatic affordability commitments.
  • Public policy trade-offs include balancing expanded access to affordable housing options (including manufactured homes) with maintaining durable affordability protections.

Takeaway

If enacted, the bill would make manufactured homes more readily counted as affordable housing and remove deed restrictions on affordable units, potentially accelerating municipal affordability metrics while reshaping long-term affordability protections.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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