Neighborhood · Ranked #29,435 of 84,120 nationally

West Somerville Eviction Risk: Moderate , Cambridge

Tract 25017354800 · Middlesex County, MA · pop 2,392 · neighborhood within 0.4 mi

Here is how census tract 25017354800, in West Somerville in Cambridge eviction risk, looks to a landlord: a 6.3/10 eviction-risk score (Elevated tier) across a population of 2,392. That is riskier than about 83% of US census tracts.

Rent eats 30% or more of income for 52% of renter households, a severe level, and 7% are severely burdened at 50% or more. The typical renter pays about $2,953 a month while the average household earns $172,708 a year, roughly 21% of income at the averages. Renters make up 51% of occupied homes, a renter-majority tract.

Risk score

5.6

Moderate

Confidence 100% · 1-10 scale

Household mix · 100 hh

Burdened renters 26% Stable renters 24% Owners 50%

Tract context

Occupied units1,064

Renter share50.6%

SVI overall0.13

Poverty rate9.2%

Median income$172,708

Percentile rank

Higher percentile = riskier than more peers.

Geographic context

Risk heat across Cambridge and the region

Centroid at 42.3927, -71.1279 · click any tract to drill in

Why West Somerville scores 5.6

9 axes · 1 = landlord-friendly

Local political climate

Inherited from Cambridge

9.0

Regional political climate

2024 county presidential margin

7.3

State political climate

Massachusetts legislature & governorship

6.2

Economic stress

9.2% poverty · this tract

2.3

Supply constraint

$2,953 rent vs county FMR

5.4

Rent control risk

Inherited from Cambridge

8.5

Eviction process difficulty

State law sets the calendar

8.5

Tenant organizing strength

Inherited from Cambridge

8.5

Housing court bias

Inherited from Cambridge

8.0

How West Somerville compares

Risk score vs. parent city, county, state.

CDC Social Vulnerability Index

SVI percentile: 13

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

6%Socioeconomic
2%Household composition
47%Racial/ethnic minority
76%Housing & transportation

Historical context · 1930s redlining

HOLC grade: C: Definitely Declining

This tract sits within an area graded by the Home Owners' Loan Corporation in the 1930s. Grade C meant mixed-race / working-class neighborhoods rated as risky. These designations suppressed minority homeownership for generations and remain a documented predictor of present-day eviction filings and rent burden.

0%Grade A
0%Grade B
100%Grade C
0%Grade D · redlined

Source: Mapping Inequality (americanpanorama.org), 1935-1940 HOLC residential security maps, aggregated to 2020 census tracts by area share. CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.

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)

11Total filings over 4 yrs
0.64%Avg annual filing rate
1.2%Peak (2015)
5Filings in 2015 (latest validated)

Filings by year 2012 to 2016

Filings dropped 100% over the past 5 months.

Pandemic-era tracking (2020-2021)

0Total filings 2020-21
0.0Avg monthly (observed)
0.2Pre-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 West Somerville. 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.

6.5%Housing insecurity
4.1%Utility-shutoff threat
5.7%Food insecurity
6.0%SNAP enrollment
4.9%Transit barriers
2.6%No health insurance
14.0%Frequent mental distress
18.4%Any disability

Analysis

What drives eviction risk in West Somerville

The score leans hardest on eviction process difficulty at 8.5/10. 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 Cambridge eviction risk, while the economic and supply signals are measured at the tract level.

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

During 2020 and 2021, eviction filings here ran at about 0.00x the pre-COVID monthly baseline, well below the pre-pandemic norm, the signature of an eviction moratorium at work.

Princeton's Eviction Lab logged 11 eviction filings here over 4 tracked years, with about 0.6% of renter households facing a filing in a typical year. Filings peaked at 1.2% of renter households in 2015.

For a landlord, this is a tract where process discipline pays off. Clean paperwork and steady screening keep the elevated risk manageable.

Frequently asked

About tract 25017354800

What is the eviction-risk score for census tract 25017354800?

Census tract 25017354800 in the West Somerville neighborhood scores 5.6/10 (Moderate 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 25017354800?

Median gross rent is $2,953/month (ACS 5-year 2023, table B25064). 52% of renter households are cost-burdened.

What is the poverty rate in tract 25017354800?

9.2% of residents in tract 25017354800 live below the federal poverty line (ACS B17001, 2023). Population: 2,392.

How socially vulnerable is tract 25017354800?

CDC Social Vulnerability Index ranks this tract in the 13th percentile nationally. Sub-themes: socioeconomic 6th, household 2th, minority 47th, housing 76th.

Is tract 25017354800 considered part of West Somerville?

Yes. Per Census Bureau 2020 Block Assignment Files, the plurality of blocks in tract 25017354800 fall within West Somerville (neighborhood centroid within 0.4 miles, OSM data).

How many evictions are filed each year in tract 25017354800?

Princeton Eviction Lab recorded 11 eviction filings across 4 validated years in tract 25017354800 (2000-2018). The average annual filing rate is 0.64% of renter households, peaking at 1.2% in 2015. Source: Eviction Lab tract-validated 2024 release.

Did eviction filings in tract 25017354800 drop during COVID?

Pandemic-era filings ran 0.00× the pre-COVID monthly baseline. Filings dropped sharply, likely a moratorium effect. Tracked by the Eviction Lab Eviction Tracking System (Boston eviction risk, MA), 2020-2021.

What share of households in tract 25017354800 struggle to pay rent?

About 6.5% 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. 4.1% also reported utility shutoff threats, a frequent precursor to eviction filings.

How does tract 25017354800 compare to Cambridge overall?

Tract 25017354800 scores 5.6/10, right in line with the parent city of Cambridge at 5.8/10. City-scale signals (state law, local rent controls, court bias) are inherited from Cambridge eviction risk; what makes this tract different are its tract-specific economic stress and supply-constraint sub-scores.

Q10

Was tract 25017354800 historically redlined?

Yes. This tract sits inside an area graded by the Home Owners' Loan Corporation in the 1930s, with a dominant grade of C. 0% of the tract's area was rated D ("Hazardous"), the redlined tier. HOLC redlining systematically denied mortgage credit to Black, immigrant, and working-class neighborhoods and remains a documented predictor of present-day eviction filings, rent burden, and homeownership gaps. Source: Mapping Inequality (americanpanorama.org), Robert K. Nelson et al.

Sibling tracts

Highest-risk tracts in Cambridge

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