The Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) establishes reasonable occupancy standards for the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program. The following are the occupancy standards for the program.
| UNIT SIZE (minimum #) |
PPL IN HOUSE (minimum #) |
PPL IN HOUSE (maximum #) |
| 0 Bedroom | 1 | 2 |
| 1 Bedroom | 1 | 2 |
| 2 Bedroom | 2 | 4 |
| 3 Bedroom | 3 | 6 |
| 4 Bedroom | 4 | 8 |
DHCD is required by law to set income limits that determine the eligibility of applicants for DHCD administered housing programs. These income limits are published annually and are based on DHCD estimates of median income for a particular area or county, adjusted for family size. The LHA income limits for the public housing program are 80% of the median income.
The need for public housing in Lowell exceeds the availability of funds for this purpose and a housing unit is a scarce resource which is in great demand. Given these realities, housing is made available to those most in need and reflecting the priorities of the LHA through local preferences, permitted by DHCD. DHCD also permits the LHA to establish other local preferences at the agency’s discretion. The following are the current preferences, and weights assigned to the preferences established by the LHA for applicant families.
| # | Preference | Weight |
| 1 | Involuntarily displaced from a dwelling unit in the municipality of Lowell by natural disaster, by fire, by unwarranted landlord action and by government action, including capital programs of the LHA
OR Households which reside in the City of Lowell and participate in non-federal housing rental subsidy program whom are at risk of displacement due to changes in the affordability requirements, administrative delivery system or level of subsidy for specific programs |
200 |
| 2 | Working head of household or working spouse, or a person 62 years old or older, or a person unable to work because of the extent of their disability | 185 |
| 3 | A legal resident of Lowell, or a person working in Lowell, or a person with a job offer to work in Lowell | 130 |
| 4 | A victim of domestic violence who has been relocated and as verified by the police | 81 |
| 5 | A veteran as verified by the Department of Veteran Affairs or an individual who has served in any branch of the military and remains in active status | 4 |
| Total Points: 600 |
Online applications processes are not available for MRVP. Click here to download the MRVP application. Once complete, applications may be mailed to the Lowell Housing Authority, Office of Public Housing, 21 Salem St., Lowell, MA 01854, or hand-delivered to the office.
Applicants completing applications in person may do so at the Lowell Housing Authority’s Office of Public Housing located at 21 Salem, Lowell, MA 01854.