Massachusetts Voters Reject Question 7 Starter Homes Plan, AP Projects

Massachusetts voters have rejected Question 7, a ballot measure that would have let single-family homes be built on much smaller lots across the state, the Associated Press projected on Friday, November 6. The question was the closest of the nine on the Massachusetts ballot and the last one the AP called, three days after Election Day.

With about 99 percent of the expected vote counted, the No side held 1,288,536 votes, or 50.6 percent, against 1,255,595 votes, or 49.4 percent, for Yes, according to the AP count. The margin was 32,941 votes out of more than 2.5 million cast.

What Question 7 would have changed

Question 7 would have amended the state zoning law to set a statewide minimum lot size of 5,000 square feet for single-family homes in residential areas. A lot would have needed at least 50 feet of frontage on a street and access to public water and sewer service. Towns that now require far larger lots would have had to allow homes on the smaller lots.

Lot minimums in Massachusetts are set town by town. A report from the National Zoning Atlas found that more than half of the state's municipalities require a minimum lot of at least 40,000 square feet, close to a full acre, for a single-family home. Supporters said those rules push builders toward large, expensive houses and lock first-time buyers out. A study by the Center for State Policy Analysis at Tufts University estimated that Question 7 could have produced between 3,500 and 12,000 net new homes in its first decade, and up to 320,000 additional homes over time.

A state split by town lines

The vote split sharply by place. Boston backed the measure by better than two to one, with 119,998 votes in favor and 53,286 against, and Cambridge and Newton also voted yes, according to the Telegram and Gazette. Many communities across Central, Eastern and Southeast Massachusetts voted no by wide margins.

The Yes campaign, Legalize Starter Homes, was organized by Andrew Mikula, a housing economist at the Pioneer Institute. "We're grateful to have the support of more than 1.2 million voters who support bringing more starter homes to families across Massachusetts," Mikula told Realtor.com. He said the campaign would study the results by community before deciding its next steps.

Builders backed the measure as an answer to a state housing shortage put at 220,000 homes. Mike Travaline, government affairs chair of the Home Builders and Remodelers Association of Massachusetts, said the loss came down to local control. "There's a lot of resistance to any type of legislation or referendum that would take away local control from each individual municipality," he told Realtor.com.

The Massachusetts Municipal Association led the opposition. In an opinion piece, Adam Chapdelaine of the association wrote that the measure would "override local planning" and replace "thoughtful local planning with a one-size-fits-all mandate that ignores the individual needs of all 351 Massachusetts cities and towns."

What happens now

Because the measure failed, lot sizes stay where they are: a decision for each city and town. The state's median listing price is $699,990, about $250,000 above the national median of $415,000, according to Realtor.com. Housing bills continue to move through the State House, and the 2024 Affordable Homes Act already lets homeowners add accessory dwelling units of up to 900 square feet on single-family lots. The Question 7 result leaves the broader fight over who sets zoning rules in Massachusetts unsettled, with both sides drawing more than 1.2 million votes.