Neighborhood · Boston, MA

Forest Hills Eviction Risk: Moderate

11 census tracts · pop 24,214 · pop-weighted Eviction Risk Score 4.9/10 · range 4.1–6.5

Forest Hills is a white-black neighborhood in Boston with 11 census tracts and a population of 24,214 residents. The neighborhood's pop-weighted eviction-risk score of 4.9/10 (Moderate tier) blends state law, county-level filing rates, parent-city politics, and tract-specific rent-to-income ratios + poverty. 43% of renters here pay at least 30% of household income on rent, and 22% are severely cost-burdened (≥50% of income). Average gross rent of $2,128/month sits 1% lower than the Boston citywide average ($2,147).

Risk score

4.9

Moderate

11 tracts · population-weighted

Forest Hills vs Boston How this neighborhood stacks against the citywide average

% of income on rent

42.7% +40%

Boston: 30.6%

Average gross rent

$2,128 -1%

Boston: $2,147

Average HH income

$120,931 +28%

Boston: $94,755

Poverty rate

12.4% -26%

Boston: 16.9%

Renter share

55.2% -14%

Boston: 64.3%

Peer neighborhoods

Neighborhoods with similar eviction risk

Same county, closest by Eviction Risk Score.

Geographic context

Risk heat across Forest Hills and the region

Click any tract to drill in · 11 tracts span score 4.1–6.5

Why Forest Hills scores 4.9

9 axes · pop-weighted · 1 = landlord-friendly

State political climate

legislature & governorship · Range 6.2–6.2 across tracts

6.2

Regional political climate

County-level mix · 2024 presidential margin · Range 8.2–8.2 across tracts

8.2

Local political climate

Parent city governance · Range 8.5–8.5 across tracts

8.5

Rent control risk

43% of income on rent · Range 8.0–8.0 across tracts

8.0

Eviction process difficulty

State notice requirements & court backlog · Range 8.0–8.0 across tracts

8.0

Tenant organizing strength

55% renter households · Range 8.5–8.5 across tracts

8.5

Housing court bias

County bench composition · Range 8.0–8.0 across tracts

8.0

Economic stress

12.4% below poverty line · Range 1.0–10.0 across tracts

3.0

Supply constraint

Rent-to-FMR gap & zoning friction · Range 1.8–6.8 across tracts

3.5

Risk score comparison

Forest Hills vs. parent city, state, U.S.

Eviction Risk Score (0–10 scale).

Variance across tracts

How uniformly does eviction risk play out in Forest Hills?

Left: distribution of constituent tract scores. Right: every tract as a heat square. Click any square to drill in.

Score distribution

0246810

Spread of 2.4 points from 4.1 to 6.5. This neighborhood crosses multiple risk tiers, so block-by-block conditions vary substantially.

Tracts as heat grid

6.5 6.1 6.0 5.5 5.3 5.1 4.7 4.5 4.2 4.1 4.1

Each square = one census tract. Color tracks the same green→red ramp as the chloropleth map above.

Census tracts

11 tracts in Forest Hills

Ranked highest-risk first. Click for per-tract detail.

Tract↕	Score↕	Pop↕	% over 30% on rent↕	Average rent↕
25025980300	6.5	287	—	—
25025110104	6.1	1,966	57%	—
25025101101	6	4,045	54%	$1,918
25025981000	5.5	30	0%	—
25025981100	5.3	91	—	—
25025120201	5.1	4,459	45%	$2,352
25025110106	4.7	1,707	62%	$2,682
25025120301	4.5	4,929	40%	$2,072
25025110105	4.2	2,677	27%	$2,644
25025120104	4.1	2,341	33%	$2,469
25025120103	4.1	1,682	30%	$3,343

Social Vulnerability Index

CDC SVI percentile: 44

Pop-weighted across 11 tracts. Higher = more vulnerable to disaster, displacement, and rent shocks. Source: CDC/ATSDR SVI 2022.

Socioeconomic status 34%ile

Poverty, unemployment, no-HS-diploma, housing cost burden

Household characteristics 34%ile

Single-parent HH, disability, language barriers, age 17- / 65+

Racial/ethnic minority 66%ile

Hispanic + non-white share of population

Housing & transport 67%ile

Multi-unit structures, mobile homes, crowding, no vehicle

Eviction filings · Princeton Eviction Lab

Court-record eviction history in Forest Hills

Aggregated across 7 validated constituent tracts. Filing rate is filings per 100 renter households, pop-weighted.

Historic baseline (2000–2018)

669Total filings (sum)
3.33%Avg annual filing rate
8.3%Peak year (2016)
3.57%Latest filed (2016)

Pandemic-era tracking (2020–2021)

448Total filings 2020-21
1.4Avg monthly observed
2.1Pre-pandemic baseline
1.78×Ratio to baseline

Pandemic filings ran above baseline. Tracked under Eviction Lab Eviction Tracking System (Boston, MA).

CDC PLACES 2023 · pop-weighted

Eviction-adjacent indicators in Forest Hills

Average across all constituent tracts, population-weighted. Source: CDC PLACES (cwsq-ngmh) crude prevalence.

14.6%Housing insecurity
9.7%Utility shutoff threat
15.4%Food insecurity
17.4%SNAP enrollment
5.6%No health insurance
23.0%Any disability

Frequently asked

About Forest Hills

What is the eviction-risk score for Forest Hills?

Forest Hills scores 4.9/10 (Moderate tier) across 11 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.

How does Forest Hills compare to Boston overall?

Forest Hills scores 2.2 points lower than Boston overall (7.1/10). Renters spend 43% of income on rent vs 31% citywide. Average rent: $2,128 vs $2,147.

What is the average rent in Forest Hills?

Average gross rent in Forest Hills is $2,128/month (pop-weighted across 11 census tracts, ACS 5-year 2023). 43% of renter households are cost-burdened.

What percentage of Forest Hills residents are renters?

55% of Forest Hills households are renter-occupied (vs 64% in Boston). The neighborhood has 24,214 residents.

Is Forest Hills a high social-vulnerability area?

Forest Hills sits in the 44th 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.

Which tracts in Forest Hills have the highest eviction risk?

The highest-risk constituent tract in Forest Hills is census tract 25025980300 (score 6.5/10). Across the 11 tracts in this neighborhood the score ranges from 4.1 to 6.5, a spread of 2.4 points.

How safe is Forest Hills for landlords?

Forest Hills carries a moderate-tier eviction-risk profile for landlords (4.9/10). Pop-weighted across 11 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 (7.1/10), this neighborhood is lower-risk.

What is the demographic breakdown of Forest Hills?

Forest Hills has 24,896 residents (White-Black Neighborhood). Top groups: White (non-Hispanic) (46%), Black (non-Hispanic) (27.6%), Hispanic / Latino (17.3%). Source: ACS 5-year 2023, table B03002.

Nearby

Other neighborhoods near Forest Hills

4.8 Mount Hope 5 tracts · pop 17,652 5.3 Pill Hill 8 tracts · pop 22,479 6.2 Dorchester Center 6 tracts · pop 31,403 6.9 Grove Hall 6 tracts · pop 22,896 4 Bellevue 2 tracts · pop 8,501 7.1 Nubian Square 9 tracts · pop 25,580

Sibling neighborhoods

Other neighborhoods inside Boston

Same parent city, ranked by score similarity to Forest Hills.

4.8 Government Center/Faneuil Hall 1 tracts · pop 2,377 4.8 Milton Upper Mills 1 tracts · pop 6,346 4.7 Oak Square 3 tracts · pop 10,325 4.7 Jeffries Point 2 tracts · pop 3,273 4.7 Dorchester Heights 14 tracts · pop 34,277 5.2 Pill Hill 8 tracts · pop 22,479

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