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Neighborhood Homes Initiative

The Neighborhood Homes Initiative uses City-owned land to create affordable homeownership opportunities for Boston homebuyers.

We are selling approximately 250 parcels of City-owned land for new homes and will provide subsidies to developers to ensure that these homes are priced affordably.  

Homes will be priced between $250,000 - $400,000, and will be affordable to households with a combined income between $60,000 - $100,000. The affordable homes produced through the initiative have a 50-year resale restriction.

Initiative homes are produced using model home designs that have been pre-approved by the City’s Inspectional Services Department. These standardized building plans will help builders create homes more efficiently and at lower cost without sacrificing quality.

Apply for the Neighborhood Homes Initiative

Also available in Spanish (Español)Portuguese (Português)Chinese (中文)French (Français)Cape Verdean Creole (Kriolu Kabuverdianu)Haitian Creole (Kreyòl ayisyen)Somali (Soomaali)Russian (русский)Vietnamese (Tiếng Việt), and Arabic (عربى).

Watch: Tour a typical home in our program

How do I apply?

Homes will be sold to qualified first-time homebuyers through a lottery process. Interested first-time buyers must apply to the Neighborhood Homes Initiative.  

Qualified applicants must:
  • meet income limits (some properties may have lower income limits than others)
  • have a pre-approval for the property type being offered, and its purchase price, and
  • have sufficient savings and meet other program requirements.

Qualified applicants will be automatically entered into every lottery for which they are qualified and meet the income limits. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, but certain properties will have application deadlines.

complete the Neighborhood Housing Initiative application

Also available in Spanish (Español)Portuguese (Português)Chinese (中文)French (Français)Cape Verdean Creole (Kriolu Kabuverdianu)Haitian Creole (Kreyòl ayisyen)Somali (Soomaali)Russian (русский)Vietnamese (Tiếng Việt), and Arabic (عربى).

Program requirements

MAXIMUM HOUSEHOLD INCOME LIMITS*

To qualify, you must meet the Maximum Household Limits at 100% of Area Median Income (AMI)

Income and asset limitations apply.

More requirements

Properties are deed-restricted with owner-occupancy requirements.

Lottery winner must be a first-time homebuyer who has completed an approved homebuyer education course and who meets the minimum household size for the property being offered.

Preferences for Boston residents and household size of one person per bedroom.

*Requirements are subject to change. 

Get involved

Properties will be listed throughout the year. To make sure you are ready, the Boston Home Center is here to help you.

If you haven’t done so already, take Homebuying 101 to learn about buying a home.

Are you an Homebuying 101 graduate who has some credit, debt, or savings issues? Take a free homebuying workshop, credit, or Homebuyer Boot Camp designed to help you work on those issues.

Meet with one of our participating lenders at a Meet the Lender event to find out what you can afford.

Drop-in to a monthly Drop-in Counseling Session and let us help you get on track for homeownership.

Join the Homebuying Club so we can keep in touch with you and let you know about classes, workshops, homebuying opportunities, and when Neighborhood Home Initiative Applications will be availability.

Sign up today for a class, workshop, Meet the Lenders event, or to join the Homebuyer Club!

For builders

Sign up online to be notified about every development opportunity that comes up. You can also search "Neighborhood Homes" on our property.boston.gov page.

To download Requests for Proposals, visit our Request for Proposals page.

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