Administration plans to close all remaining hotel shelters this summer

Gov. Maura Healey yesterday announced plans to phase out the use of all remaining hotels as emergency shelter sites this summer.

Healey had previously directed all hotel shelters to be closed by the end of this year.

As of April 30, 32 hotels were being used as emergency shelters, down from a peak of 100 in the summer of 2023, according to the administration.

By mid-April, the number of families in the Emergency Assistance Family Shelter program had dropped below 5,000 for the first time since July 2023, and the number is expected to drop below 4,000 families this summer.

The governor said the decrease is a result of a number of shelter system reforms, including a six-month length-of-stay limit, the elimination of presumptive eligibility for the shelter system, workforce training and job placement for residents, and increased case management to help families find stable housing.

“A hotel is no place to raise a family, and they are the least cost-effective [option],” Healey said in a prepared statement.

Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll said the closure of hotel shelters will save the state “hundreds of millions of dollars a year.”

The Emergency Assistance system provides emergency shelter and rehousing to families with children and pregnant women living in Massachusetts. The one-of-a-kind program has contributed to Massachusetts having one of the lowest rates of unsheltered family homelessness in the country, according to the administration.

The previous administration, under Gov. Charlie Baker, had phased out the use of hotels and motels as emergency shelters, but turned to hotels again in 2022 as the number of families seeking shelter began to dramatically increase.

In August of 2023, Gov. Healey declared a state of emergency and imposed a cap on the emergency shelter system at 7,500 families. She also worked with the Legislature to reform the state’s right-to-shelter law, and in April began requiring proof of Massachusetts residency and proof that all family members have lawful immigration status, with limited exemptions. Healey also imposed mandatory CORI checks for all adults before entry into the system.

Housing and Livable Communities Secretary Ed Augustus thanked shelter providers and their staff, who “played a critical role in rapidly scaling up services to meet an unprecedented surge in need,” particularly during 2022 and 2023. He added, “We are also grateful to the communities and partners who have come together to support families throughout this emergency.”

Since the start of 2025, double the number of families have exited shelter (approximately 2,500) than have entered shelter (approximately 1,100), according to the administration. Approximately 85% to 90% of families seeking shelter are now longtime Massachusetts families.

Due to the declining caseload, the Norfolk Rapid Shelter located at the former Bay State Correctional Center and the Revere CSR site at the Revere Quality Inn will close this summer. Additionally, the Lowell Inn and Conference Center will transition from a “bridge track” shelter site to a “rapid track” shelter and CSR site in July.

An administration website, updated weekly, provides shelter placement data, listed by municipality.