Massachusetts allows renters to deduct 50% of rent paid for a principal residence, up to $4,000.

The Massachusetts rental deduction is reported on Line 14 of Massachusetts Form 1. The program will automatically determine your rental deduction based on the amount of qualifying rent you paid during the tax year.

TaxAct Online

To enter the Massachusetts rental deduction in TaxAct Online:

1. From within the TaxAct return, navigate to the State tab from the side menu.
2. Click Massachusetts under the State tab to access the Massachusetts Quick Q&A Topics screen.
3. Click Miscellaneous Topics to expand the list and select Rental Deduction. 
4. You will now be on the screen titled Massachusetts – Rental Deduction. Enter the total amount of qualifying rent paid during the tax year.

Desktop

To enter the Massachusetts rental deduction in the TaxAct Desktop program:

1. From within the TaxAct return, navigate to the Q&A tab via the menu bar at the top of the program.
2. Navigate to the State tab and click Continue.
3. Click Yes to start the State Q&A process.
4. On the screen titled Review and Edit Items on Your Massachusetts State Taxes, select Rental Deduction from the list of possible items.
5. You will now be on the screen titled Massachusetts – Rental Deduction. Enter the total amount of qualifying rent paid during the tax year.

What Qualifies for the Rental Deduction?

The deduction must be for rent you paid to a landlord for the rental or lease of your principal residence in Massachusetts.

A principal residence does not include any residence for vacation, an apartment for a person on a temporary assignment or a student or faculty member who has a principal residence elsewhere. It also does not include any apartment or house in Massachusetts of a nonresident who has a legal residence in another state or country. If the rent is paid by a third party who maintains a principal residence elsewhere, no rental deduction is allowed for either party.

If two or more persons jointly rent a unit, each occupant using it as his/her principal residence is entitled to a deduction based on the amount of rent that each person paid.

Payment for occupying a hotel, motel or rooming house is not considered rent unless a rental agreement exists. All separately stated charges such as utilities, furnishings or parking cannot be included in rent for purposes of this deduction. Rent does not include any advance payments (such as security deposit, last month’s rent, etc.) until actually applied as rent.

For more information, visit Massachusetts.gov – Deductions on Rent Paid in Massachusetts