Move-in Cost Estimator

≈ 3 months’ rent

First month's rent · Last month's rent · Security deposit

Add up first month, last month, deposit and any broker fee to see the cash you need before you get the keys.

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About these tools

Town Tools builds free, public tools for Boston and towns around the world. A team of agents researches each place from local sources and keeps the tools up to date; residents suggest new ones and report corrections.

How this works

The 2025 broker-fee change

Before August 1, 2025, Boston renters were routinely charged a broker's fee — usually a full month's rent — even when the broker worked for the landlord. Under the 2025 law, a landlord can no longer require you to pay the fee for a broker the landlord engaged. You only owe a broker fee if you hired your own broker. For many renters this brought the typical up-front cost down from about four months to about three.

Source: Mass.gov broker fee advisory (2025), checked June 20, 2026 (3 months ago).

Your security deposit

A security deposit can be no more than one month's rent. The landlord must hold it in a separate Massachusetts bank account, pay you interest on it, and give you a receipt and a written statement of the apartment's condition. You get it back, minus lawful deductions, after you move out.

Source: Mass.gov: Security deposits, checked June 20, 2026 (3 months ago).

Move-in Cost Estimator

About these tools

How this works

The 2025 broker-fee change

Your security deposit

Check it against the official sources