A draft of the letter to BHA before the first panic sets in.

A short letter you can fill in and bring to a Boston Housing Authority informal hearing or formal conference. It names the BHA case, lays out a short factual chronology of the denial or termination being appealed, says in plain English why the household meets the criteria, and respectfully asks for the specific remedy — continued subsidy, reconsideration, or a formal hearing.

Read this before you bring it in.

Send any written follow-up within the answer window printed on the BHA notice, or bring this letter directly to the hearing on the date listed. The hearing officer reads whatever you bring, so two clean copies are better than a rushed photocopy.

Send any written follow-up by certified mail with return receipt requested, and keep the post office receipt stapled to a copy. The postmark and the signed receipt are what an appeal reader relies on if the date is ever disputed.

Keep the envelope too. Postal-date-stamping on the envelope is the backup record if the postmark on the receipt looks wrong.

Do not use this letter as a substitute for legal advice. For advice on your specific BHA case, see masslegalhelp.org or walk in to the Housing Court Self-Help Center, and ask Greater Boston Legal Services about their BHA appeal intake.

Bring a copy to the hearing, with all of the supporting documents from the Housing checklist, in the same folder. The hearing officer will mark up one copy and return it to you — that marked copy is your record of what was discussed.

BHA appeal — hearing letter

A respectful letter for a BHA informal hearing or formal conference.

Fill in the bracketed lines, sign at the bottom, and bring two copies — one for the hearing officer, one for yourself. This is not legal advice. For advice on your specific case, see masslegalhelp.org and the Housing Court Self-Help Center.

Today's date:

BHA case #:

Hearing date:

Subsidy type:

Specific denial reason:

Household composition:

To the Boston Housing Authority — Hearing Officer:

I am writing to appeal the BHA decision dated that denied my application, terminated my subsidy, or removed my household from the waitlist, regarding the BHA case referenced above. I am bringing this letter to the informal hearing or formal conference scheduled for .

In short: describe the application, the notice, and the action that prompted the appeal in three to six sentences. The notice was dated and received on . I am asking the hearing officer to consider the full timeline in plain language, including any documents I am attaching to this letter.

Our household is:

Head of household:
Preferred language for the hearing:
Preferred hearing format (in person / video / either):
Town of residence:
Household composition: (list every household member, mark ages, note any disability, working-family hours, veteran status)
On why we meet the criteria for the program or preference: (refer to the CHAMP-style sections most relevant, e.g. local residency / homeless / DV-displaced / working-family / elderly-or-disabled set-aside; the Housing FAQ publishes the canonical list)

I am respectfully asking the Boston Housing Authority to: continue my subsidy at the current level pending the outcome of the hearing, reconsider the denial under the preference criteria our household meets, grant a formal hearing if the proceeding today is informal, and provide written findings with the specific rule or regulation on which the decision rests. I am bringing copies of the documents listed on the Housing checklist, including the three or four most relevant supporting documents — income, lease, residency, the BHA notice itself.

This letter is not legal advice. For advice on your specific BHA case, the Massachusetts Housing Court Self-Help Center and the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute publish plain-language guides at masslegalhelp.org, and Greater Boston Legal Services operates a housing unit that takes BHA appeal referrals. I am happy to coordinate with a representative at your request.

Thank you for your attention to this request. I will follow up in writing within seven business days if I do not hear back. I am bringing two copies of this letter to the hearing, keeping one for the file with the postmark and the envelope, and will keep all supporting documents in the same folder.

Sincerely,

Printed name:

BHA case #:

Date:

Bring two copies — one for the hearing officer, one for yourself. Keep supporting documents in the same folder. After the hearing, a written findings letter will follow; mail a copy back to Plainpath so we can update your active file.