Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick has signed legislation that establishes a new chapter regarding publicly assisted affordable housing, which includes a wide variety of federally and state assisted rental housing projects, including Section 8, federal and state low-income housing tax credits, Section 221(d)(4), and others. The act requires owners of covered assisted housing projects to:
- Provide written notice to: (a) all tenants, and the tenant organization, if any; (b) the chief executive officer of the affected municipality; (c) the Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation; and (d) the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) not less than two years before the termination of the property’s affordability restrictions;
- Give DHCD or its designee a right of first offer before entering into a contract to sell such property; and
- Grant a right of first refusal to DHCD or its designee upon the execution of a third-party purchase-and-sale agreement regarding such publicly assisted housing.
