Massachusetts has some of the strictest security deposit laws in the country. A missed deadline, a missing receipt, or an improper deduction can trigger three times the deposit in damages — plus attorney's fees. Amavera helps you get the documentation right.
Massachusetts landlords who fail to return the security deposit with a signed, itemized list of damages and supporting documentation within 30 days of the end of tenancy can be ordered to pay triple the deposit amount, plus court costs and reasonable attorney's fees. The penalty is mandatory — courts do not have discretion to reduce it.
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that landlords cannot deduct from security deposits for reasonable wear and tear, and that whether costs like repainting or carpet cleaning qualify is fact-specific — depending on the length of the tenancy and the unit's condition at move-in. It also held that a lease clause requiring tenants to pay for professional cleaning, on penalty of deposit deductions, is void and unenforceable. Landlords who make improper deductions risk forfeiting the deposit and facing triple damages.
Amavera lets you invite tenants to document each unit's condition at move-in using a guided mobile app — or, for the strongest record, complete the walkthrough yourself. You manage credits, reports, and comparisons from the web portal. Every report becomes documentation you can rely on. Note: an Amavera report strengthens your evidence but does not replace the separate statutory Statement of Condition that Massachusetts requires you to give the tenant within 10 days of the tenancy — keep providing that too.
In Massachusetts, the burden of proof is on the landlord. If a tenant disputes your deductions and you cannot produce timestamped photos, receipts, and an itemized statement, undocumented deductions are extremely hard to defend — regardless of the actual damage. The strict-compliance penalties exist specifically because the legislature determined that undocumented deductions should not stand.
Amavera gives you the documentation before you need it. Invite your tenant to inspect at move-in — 10 minutes creates the baseline. Invite again at move-out — 10 minutes creates the comparison. The AI does the analysis. The PDF is ready before the 30-day clock starts.
If you manage several units, you're doing move-in and move-out inspections year-round. Buy a Pro 30 bundle on the portal and invite tenants as each lease begins — 30 inspection reports at a significant discount, enough to cover your turnovers without thinking about it.
Single reports available at $30 each. Bundles of 3, 5, and 10 also available.
Buy report credits, invite your tenants, and review inspection reports — all from the portal.
Open the Landlord Portal