2 census tracts · pop 6,077 · pop-weighted Eviction Risk Score 6.8/10
· range 6.7–6.9
Dock Square takes in 2 census tracts of Boston, MA and houses 6,077 people. The Eviction Risk Score is 6.8/10, in the Elevated tier. The strongest single driver of the headline number is tenant-organizing strength at 8.5/10.
71% of occupied units are rented, so comparables are plentiful and vacancy risk is low, but a mispriced renewal loses the tenant to a building two streets over. Against a Boston baseline of 30.6%, 39% of renters here cross the 30%-of-income line.
At $2,724 a month, rents sit 27% over what the rest of Boston commands. On the high side is rent-regulation exposure at 8/10.
Running hot is eviction-process difficulty at 8/10. 14% are severely burdened, paying half their income or more in rent. That cohort has no absorption capacity for an unexpected bill, and it is where non-payment filings originate.
Court records carry 52 eviction filings across its 2 observed tracts. 4.1% of adults report being unable to pay a utility bill, below a 9.2% national figure. Utility arrears usually lead rent arrears by a month or two. SNAP participation is 6.0% of households versus 15.2% nationally.
The worst year on record was 2014, when filings touched 0.7% of renter households. Recent filings have not receded much: 0.5% in 2016 against a 0.7% peak.
Among the 57 mapped neighborhoods of Boston, it ranks #49 by risk, the lower third. Its 2 tracts score within 0.2 points of one another, so the area figure travels well to individual addresses. Annual rent works out to 27% of average household income of $122,078.
With little internal variation, 6.8/10 is a fair proxy for any address inside the boundary. The number is rebuilt whenever its ACS, court-record, or statutory inputs change.
Risk score
6.8
Elevated
2 tracts · population-weighted
Dock Square vs BostonHow this neighborhood stacks against the citywide average
Single-parent HH, disability, language barriers, age 17- / 65+
Racial/ethnic minority22%ile
Hispanic + non-white share of population
Housing & transport88%ile
Multi-unit structures, mobile homes, crowding, no vehicle
Eviction filings · Princeton Eviction Lab
Court-record eviction history in Dock Square
Aggregated across 2 validated constituent tracts. Filing rate is filings per 100 renter households, pop-weighted.
Historic baseline (2000–2018)
52Total filings (sum)
0.52%Avg annual filing rate
0.7%Peak year (2014)
0.58%Latest filed (2016)
Pandemic-era tracking (2020–2021)
19Total filings 2020-21
0.2Avg monthly observed
0.8Pre-pandemic baseline
0.32×Ratio to baseline
Pandemic filings ran far below baseline. Tracked under Eviction Lab Eviction Tracking System (Boston, MA).
CDC PLACES 2023 · pop-weighted
Eviction-adjacent indicators in Dock Square
Average across all constituent tracts, population-weighted. Source: CDC PLACES (cwsq-ngmh) crude prevalence.
6.5%Housing insecurity
4.2%Utility shutoff threat
5.8%Food insecurity
6.1%SNAP enrollment
2.6%No health insurance
17.3%Any disability
Frequently asked
About Dock Square
Q1
What is the eviction-risk score for Dock Square?
Dock Square scores 6.8/10 (Elevated tier) across 2 census tracts. The pop-weighted Eviction Risk Score blends state law, county filing rates, parent-city politics, and tract-specific rent-to-income and poverty signals.
Q2
How does Dock Square compare to Boston overall?
Dock Square scores 1.3 points lower than Boston overall (8.1/10). Renters spend 39% of income on rent vs 31% citywide. Average rent: $2,724 vs $2,147.
Q3
What is the average rent in Dock Square?
Average gross rent in Dock Square is $2,724/month (pop-weighted across 2 census tracts, ACS 5-year 2023). 39% of renter households are cost-burdened.
Q4
What percentage of Dock Square residents are renters?
71% of Dock Square households are renter-occupied (vs 64% in Boston). The neighborhood has 6,077 residents.
Q5
Is Dock Square a high social-vulnerability area?
Dock Square sits in the 31st percentile nationally on the CDC Social Vulnerability Index (less vulnerable). The index combines poverty, unemployment, household composition, racial/ethnic minority share, and housing/transportation factors across all US census tracts.
Q6
Which tracts in Dock Square have the highest eviction risk?
The highest-risk constituent tract in Dock Square is census tract 25025030400 (score 6.9/10). Across the 2 tracts in this neighborhood the score ranges from 6.7 to 6.9, a spread of 0.2 points.
Q7
How safe is Dock Square for landlords?
Dock Square carries a elevated-tier eviction-risk profile for landlords (6.8/10). Pop-weighted across 2 constituent tracts, the score blends parent-city rent-control posture, county eviction-process timelines, and tract-specific rent-to-income / poverty signals. Compared to Boston as a whole (8.1/10), this neighborhood is lower-risk.
Q8
What is the demographic breakdown of Dock Square?
Dock Square has 6,077 residents. Top groups: White (non-Hispanic) (87.5%), Black (non-Hispanic) (4.3%), Asian (non-Hispanic) (3.6%). Source: ACS 5-year 2023, table B03002.
