Boston— The Small Property Owners Association (SPOA) has announced a change in its leadership for 2026, with longtime Vice President Amir Shahsavari elected as President and Tony Lopes taking over as Vice President. The appointments were made by the association’s Board last month, marking the beginning of a new chapter for the organisation representing small-scale housing providers in Massachusetts.
Shahsavari, who served as SPOA’s Vice President for five years, said the association would continue to focus on protecting property rights while advocating balanced housing policies. “Our mission remains focused on defending property rights while promoting housing solutions that benefit renters, property owners, and the many small businesses that rely on neighborhood-based housing providers,” he said.
Lopes said small property owners play a critical but often overlooked role in the housing ecosystem. “Small property owners provide the majority of rental housing in Massachusetts, yet they are facing rapidly rising operating costs that make staying in business more difficult every year,” he said.
SPOA reiterated its opposition to the proposed rent control ballot initiative, warning that such measures could negatively affect housing supply, affordability, and quality. According to the association, small property owners — typically local, family-run businesses — provide about 65 per cent of rental housing in Boston and across the state, much of it considered naturally occurring affordable housing.
The association highlighted mounting cost pressures on landlords, including double-digit increases in electricity and natural gas rates since 2021, property insurance premium hikes estimated between 20 and 40 per cent, and maintenance and construction costs that remain 30 to 50 per cent higher than pre-pandemic levels due to labour shortages and material inflation.
“When rents are capped artificially, owners cannot keep up with maintenance and repairs, which ultimately hurts tenants,” Lopes said, adding that these costs continue to rise regardless of regulatory limits.
Both leaders cited research and recent examples to argue against rent control. Lopes pointed to St. Paul, Minnesota, where rent control measures were followed by a decline in new housing construction, while neighbouring Minneapolis saw stabilised rents after increasing supply. Shahsavari noted that Massachusetts voters banned rent control statewide in 1994 and rejected its return in Cambridge in 2003.
He also cautioned that proposed exemptions for small property owners would apply only to owner-occupied buildings with four units or fewer, leaving many small landlords subject to the same rules as large corporate owners.
Sharing a personal account, Shahsavari said his family experienced the impact of rent control firsthand. He recalled how his mother, an immigrant housing provider, struggled during the rent control era of the 1980s and 1990s to maintain and improve her property or address nonpayment and damage, eventually losing good tenants.
Rather than what it describes as punitive regulation, SPOA said it is advocating alternative policy approaches, including proposals that would allow property owners to voluntarily allocate a portion of rent toward a tenant’s future home down payment, supported by government matching funds, tax incentives, and interest-free repair loans.
“We need policies that increase opportunity, preserve housing quality, and help renters become future homeowners,” Shahsavari said. “That means working with small property owners, not against them.”
