7,327 people in Massachusetts are in emergency housing, according to the state’s biweekly report.
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – There are 7,327 people in Massachusetts who are in emergency housing, according to the state’s biweekly report.
The shelter crisis continues as Massachusetts is the only right-to-shelter state in the country. The cap of families allowed in shelters is 7,500 and the emergency housing rates have been at record highs due to the influx of migrants arriving in Massachusetts.
The length of stay is limited to nine months however, it will allow two 90-day extensions for those who are eligible, including pregnant people, people diagnosed with a disability or medical condition, and those at risk of harm from domestic violence. The average stay of families in shelters or hotels on August 22nd is 345 days.
To date, $856.8 million has been spent on assistance in the 2024 Fiscal Year which includes the following:
Shelter and associated services
National Guard activation
Clinical and Safety Risk Assessment Sites
Temporary Emergency Shelters
Family Welcome Centers
Municipal payments
TRC spending
Number of families in Massachusetts emergency shelters:
As of October 7th, 7,327 families are in shelters, hotels or motels, 3,639 of that number entered Massachusetts as migrants, refugees, or asylum seekers. In western Massachusetts, around 780 families are being housed in emergency shelters.
251 families on the waitlist are at Temporary Respite Centers (overflow sites) in Cambridge, Chelsea, Lexington, or Norfolk and two clinical and safety risk assessment sites in Revere and Quincy. According to the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, 162 families have left the emergency assistance program from September 19th through October 2nd.
Acton 35
Amherst 6
Andover 33
Ashland 2
Attleboro 15
Auburn 88
Ayer 54
Barnstable 34
Beverly 26
Boston 1,295
Bourne 47
Bridgewater 6
Brockton 184
Brookline 33
Burlington 34
Cambridge 35
Chelmsford 4
Chelsea 22
Chicopee 113
Concord 98
Danvers 177
Dedham 167
Devens 11
Everett 96
Fall River 97
Falmouth 10
Fitchburg 9
Foxborough 79
Framingham 211
Franklin 96
Gardner 45
Gloucester 6
Greenfield 55
Hanson 1
Haverhill 78
Holyoke 173
Hudson 49
Kingston 91
Lawrence 68
Leicester 39
Lexington 26
Lowell 353
Lynn 312
Malden 62
Marlborough 158
Marshfield 21
Medford 40
Medway 11
Melrose 1
Methuen 73
Middleborough 12
Milford 82
Milton 2
New Bedford 29
North Attleboro 1
Northampton 28
Northborough 9
Norton 19
Norwell 15
Norwood 86
Peabody 238
Pittsfield 35
Plainville 52
Plymouth 35
Raynham 66
Revere 24
Rockland 71
Salem 75
Saugus 75
Sharon 74
Shrewsbury 52
South Hadley 7
Southbridge 1
Springfield 290
Stoneham 1
Stoughton 232
Taunton 180
Tewksbury 27
Wakefield 2
Waltham 52
Watertown 41
West Springfield 73
Westborough 59
Westminster 33
Weymouth 6
Woburn 112
Worcester 352
Local News Headlines
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