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Neighborhood · Ranked #7,836 of 84,120 nationally

Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District Eviction Risk: High , Lowell

Tract 25017312400 · Middlesex County, MA · pop 2,186 · neighborhood within 0.6 mi

Census tract 25017312400 covers part of the Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District area of Lowell, MA, and scores 8/10 on landlord eviction risk. Population here is 2,186. Set annual rent against average income of $36,667 and the ratio lands at 45%, above the conventional 30% ceiling.

Risk score
8
High
Confidence 100% · 1–10 scale
Household mix · 100 hh
Burdened renters 46% Stable renters 39% Owners 15%
Tract context
Occupied units980
Renter share85.9%
SVI overall0.99
Poverty rate19.0%
Median income$36,667

Percentile rank

Higher percentile = riskier than more peers.
Within neighborhood
33 th percentile
Rank, 33rd percentileLowHigh
#3 of 4 tracts In Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District
Low
Within parent city
60 th percentile
Rank, 60th percentileLowHigh
#11 of 26 tracts In Lowell
Elevated
Within county
82 th percentile
Rank, 82nd percentileLowHigh
#67 of 357 tracts In Middlesex County
High
Within state
87 th percentile
Rank, 87th percentileLowHigh
#213 of 1,613 tracts In Massachusetts
High
Geographic context

Risk heat across Lowell and the region

Centroid at 42.6413, -71.3012 · click any tract to drill in

Why Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District scores 8

9 axes · 1 = landlord-friendly
Local political climate
Inherited from Lowell
6.5
Regional political climate
2024 county presidential margin
7.3
State political climate
Massachusetts legislature & governorship
6.2
Economic stress
19.0% poverty · this tract
4.8
Supply constraint
$1,389 rent vs county FMR
1.0
Rent control risk
Inherited from Lowell
5.0
Eviction process difficulty
State law sets the calendar
6.5
Tenant organizing strength
Inherited from Lowell
6.0
Housing court bias
Inherited from Lowell
6.5

How Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District compares

Risk score vs. parent city, county, state.
Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District risk score vs. parent city / county / state8.0This tracttract 3124006.6Lowellparent city6.3Countyavg tract in county6.2Stateavg tract in state
CDC Social Vulnerability Index

SVI percentile: 99

CDC/ATSDR 2022. Higher = more vulnerable. National percentile across 84k tracts.

Eviction filings

Court-record eviction history

Court-validated eviction filings collected from county clerks and consolidated by the Eviction Lab at Princeton University. Filing rate is filings per 100 renter households.1

Historic baseline (2000–2018)

  • 210Total filings over 5 yrs
  • 5.78%Avg annual filing rate
  • 7.2%Peak (2014)
  • 43Filings in 2016 (latest validated)
Filings by year 2012 to 2016
Year-by-year eviction filings in tract 25017312400
Filings climbed 48% over the past 5 months.

Pandemic-era tracking (2020–2021)

  • 0Total filings 2020-21
  • 0.0Avg monthly (observed)
  • 0.0Pre-pandemic baseline
  • 0.00×Ratio to baseline
Monthly filings 2020–2021 2020-01-01 to 2023-11-01
Monthly eviction filings vs pre-pandemic baseline

Pandemic filings ran far below baseline (moratorium effect). Eviction Lab tracked Boston, MA as part of its 34-metro Eviction Tracking System.

Comparable tracts

Census tracts with similar eviction risk

Within Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District. Closest by Eviction Risk Score.

CDC PLACES 2023 · health & economic stress

Eviction-adjacent indicators

Crude prevalence of conditions linked to housing loss. Source: CDC PLACES (cwsq-ngmh), 2023 model-based small-area estimates.

Analysis

What drives eviction risk in Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District

SNAP participation runs 36.4% against 15.2% nationally. The clearest offset is supply constraint at 1/10. 86% of occupied units are rented, so comparables are plentiful and vacancy risk is low, but a mispriced renewal loses the tenant to a building nearby.

Cost burden runs 54% here against 43.0% across Middlesex County. It sits 1.7 points above the Middlesex County average of 6.3.

Severe burden reaches 19%. Those are renters paying half their income or more, and that is where non-payment filings originate. Well under the midpoint, court filing pressure reads 2.5/10. The poverty rate is 19%, which in this model reads as reduced rent-recovery odds after a judgment.

Sitting well above the midpoint, regional political climate reads 7.3/10. Court records carry 210 eviction filings across 5 observed years.

Average gross rent is $1,389, 15% below the Lowell average. Inability to pay a utility bill runs 14.8% against 9.2% nationally. Utility arrears usually lead rent arrears by a month or two.

Filings peaked in 2014 at 7.2% of renter households.

All figures here are ACS 5-year estimates for this tract, refreshed as the underlying releases land.

Frequently asked

About tract 25017312400

Q1

What is the eviction-risk score for census tract 25017312400?

Census tract 25017312400 in the Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District neighborhood scores 8/10 (High tier). The Eviction Risk Score blends state law, county filing rates, parent-city politics, and tract-specific rent-to-income ratios + poverty signals.
Q2

What is the average rent in tract 25017312400?

Median gross rent is $1,389/month (ACS 5-year 2023, table B25064). 54% of renter households are cost-burdened.
Q3

What is the poverty rate in tract 25017312400?

19.0% of residents in tract 25017312400 live below the federal poverty line (ACS B17001, 2023). Population: 2,186.
Q4

How socially vulnerable is tract 25017312400?

CDC Social Vulnerability Index ranks this tract in the 99th percentile nationally. Sub-themes: socioeconomic 92th, household 100th, minority 55th, housing 95th.
Q5

Is tract 25017312400 considered part of Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District?

Yes. Per Census Bureau 2020 Block Assignment Files, the plurality of blocks in tract 25017312400 fall within Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District (neighborhood centroid within 0.6 miles, OSM data).
Q6

How many evictions are filed each year in tract 25017312400?

Princeton Eviction Lab recorded 210 eviction filings across 5 validated years in tract 25017312400 (2000-2018). The average annual filing rate is 5.78% of renter households, peaking at 7.2% in 2014. Source: Eviction Lab tract-validated 2024 release.
Q7

What share of households in tract 25017312400 struggle to pay rent?

About 24.1% of adults in this tract reported housing insecurity (could not pay rent or mortgage in the past 12 months), per the CDC PLACES 2023 model-based small-area estimate. 14.8% also reported utility shutoff threats, a frequent precursor to eviction filings.
Q8

How does tract 25017312400 compare to Lowell overall?

Tract 25017312400 scores 8/10, higher than the parent city of Lowell at 6.6/10. City-scale signals (state law, local rent controls, court bias) are inherited from Lowell eviction risk; what makes this tract different are its tract-specific economic stress and supply-constraint sub-scores.
Sibling tracts

Highest-risk tracts in Lowell

Top eight tracts in Lowell ranked by composite eviction-risk score.

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