Neighborhood · Ranked #19,399 of 84,120 nationally

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

Tract 25017312501 · Middlesex County, MA · pop 4,777 · neighborhood within 1.4 mi

The Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District area of Lowell anchors census tract 25017312501, which lands at 5.4/10 on landlord eviction risk. On the national scale it ranks #39,298 of 84,120 for landlord eviction difficulty.

About 58% of renters carry a rent burden of 30% of income or higher, a severe level, and 28% are severely burdened at 50% or more. The typical renter pays about $1,558 a month while the average household earns $106,114 a year, roughly 18% of income at the averages. Renters make up 27% of occupied homes.

Risk score

6.5

Elevated

Confidence 100% · 1-10 scale

Household mix · 100 hh

Burdened renters 16% Stable renters 11% Owners 73%

Tract context

Occupied units1,813

Renter share27.3%

SVI overall0.46

Poverty rate13.7%

Median income$106,114

Percentile rank

Higher percentile = riskier than more peers.

Geographic context

Risk heat across Lowell and the region

Centroid at 42.6472, -71.2835 · click any tract to drill in

Why Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District scores 6.5

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

13.7% poverty · this tract

3.4

Supply constraint

$1,558 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.

CDC Social Vulnerability Index

SVI percentile: 46

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

30%Socioeconomic
48%Household composition
56%Racial/ethnic minority
62%Housing & transportation

Eviction filings · Princeton Eviction Lab

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.

Historic baseline (2000-2018)

150Total filings over 5 yrs
6.22%Avg annual filing rate
7.4%Peak (2014)
26Filings in 2016 (latest validated)

Filings by year 2012 to 2016

Filings stayed roughly flat 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

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.

11.7%Housing insecurity
7.4%Utility-shutoff threat
13.3%Food insecurity
16.1%SNAP enrollment
8.5%Transit barriers
5.2%No health insurance
16.4%Frequent mental distress
29.2%Any disability

Analysis

What drives eviction risk in Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District

The score leans hardest on eviction process difficulty at 6.5/10. That part comes from the wider legal climate rather than the tract itself. Statewide and court-level factors such as eviction-process speed and rent-control exposure are inherited from Lowell eviction risk, while the economic and supply signals are measured at the tract level.

Set against its neighbors, this tract scores about the same as the Middlesex County average of 5.2 and below the Massachusetts statewide average of 5.9. Within its own county it reads on the riskier side for landlords.

Princeton's Eviction Lab logged 150 eviction filings here over 5 tracked years, with about 6.2% of renter households facing a filing in a typical year. Filings peaked at 7.4% of renter households in 2014.

The tract is predominantly White and ranks around the 46th percentile nationally on the CDC Social Vulnerability Index, a measure of how exposed residents are to housing and economic shocks. That is a middle-of-the-pack reading for social vulnerability.

For a landlord, conditions here are middle-of-the-road. Standard screening and prompt, documented notices usually keep cases short.

Frequently asked

About tract 25017312501

What is the eviction-risk score for census tract 25017312501?

Census tract 25017312501 in the Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District neighborhood scores 6.5/10 (Elevated tier). The Eviction Risk Score blends state law, county filing rates, parent-city politics, and tract-specific rent-to-income ratios + poverty signals.

What is the average rent in tract 25017312501?

Median gross rent is $1,558/month (ACS 5-year 2023, table B25064). 58% of renter households are cost-burdened.

What is the poverty rate in tract 25017312501?

13.7% of residents in tract 25017312501 live below the federal poverty line (ACS B17001, 2023). Population: 4,777.

How socially vulnerable is tract 25017312501?

CDC Social Vulnerability Index ranks this tract in the 46th percentile nationally. Sub-themes: socioeconomic 30th, household 48th, minority 56th, housing 62th.

Is tract 25017312501 considered part of Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District?

Yes. Per Census Bureau 2020 Block Assignment Files, the plurality of blocks in tract 25017312501 fall within Merrimack-Middle Street Historic District (neighborhood centroid within 1.4 miles, OSM data).

How many evictions are filed each year in tract 25017312501?

Princeton Eviction Lab recorded 150 eviction filings across 5 validated years in tract 25017312501 (2000-2018). The average annual filing rate is 6.22% of renter households, peaking at 7.4% in 2014. Source: Eviction Lab tract-validated 2024 release.

What share of households in tract 25017312501 struggle to pay rent?

About 11.7% 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. 7.4% also reported utility shutoff threats, a frequent precursor to eviction filings.

How does tract 25017312501 compare to Lowell overall?

Tract 25017312501 scores 6.5/10, lower than the parent city of Lowell at 6.8/10. 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.