While these homes are protected under the federal Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act, local zoning laws can present challenges. Operators must mash sober homes navigate these regulations carefully to avoid legal disputes while ensuring compliance. In Massachusetts, sober house certification is governed by a framework to ensure facilities meet care and safety standards. The Massachusetts Alliance for Sober Housing (MASH) offers voluntary certification, which signifies adherence to best practices. Certification requires compliance with National Alliance for Recovery Residences (NARR) standards, covering health, safety, and ethical operations.
This tool is an invaluable resource to those considering operating in the state because you can use it to better understand the market and identify holes in the state’s offerings. Matthew Powers is the owner-operator of Chelsea’s House LLC, which has multiple homes for men and women in Chelsea and Lynn. He opened his first home in 2012 with his two brothers. The Chelsea’s House Franklin Street location was the first male MASH-certified house in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Matthew has served on the MASH Board of Directors for five years and is on the Ethics Committee. Matthew and his team at Chelsea’s House continue to sit on multiple recovery court teams that advocate for addicts and alcoholics.
- Each guest can expect a clean bed, sufficient clothing storage, HDTV w/ cable and free wifi in every room inside a clean, well maintained home cared for by the guests who stay there!
- United House for Veterans is an all male recovery house located in Dorchester, MA.
- This certification enhances credibility and provides residents with a safe, supportive environment.
- In the event of a lawsuit or claim, uninsured operators may face substantial expenses, jeopardizing the operation of the sober house and resident well-being.
The process involves a thorough review of policies, procedures, and the living environment. Operators must demonstrate they provide a substance-free setting with regular drug testing, peer support meetings, and access to recovery resources. Certified homes must maintain proper documentation, ensuring transparency. This certification enhances credibility and provides residents with a safe, supportive environment. Effective September 1, 2016, state agencies and their vendors are only able to refer clients to certified alcohol and drug-free (ADF) housing. In accordance with this requirement, MASH serves as the primary agency for accountability of all certified homes in Massachusetts.
» Steps to Certification
In 2010, Denise graduated from Massachusetts School of Law with a Juris Doctorate degree and is a member of the Massachusetts Bar. Denise is passionate about helping people in recovery in both her professional career and her personal life. If there are any changes to the sober home policies or sober home management, please notify MASH to update our files. https://ecosoberhouse.com/ An increase in beds will require an additional inspection to the sober home. Sober homes applying for annual recertification must remit payment of certification fees during the recertification process and prior to scheduling the home inspection. (iii) a certificate issued pursuant to section 23 of chapter 60 indicating that there are no taxes or other assessments that constitute liens on the parcel of real estate upon which the housing shall be located.
Faith House #1
My roommate was so banged up every night it was a relief when he finally passed out. They mean well but do not do enough due diligence when letting potential residents in. For the warmer months, we also have an outdoor meeting area, large decks, and a yard to enjoy. I was a resident at the women’s sober home for a couple of months. The woman who runs it has stolen from residents including myself ( I have filed a police report) and also many residents believe is using drugs herself. She allows certain women to use drugs on the premises as well.
We promote a family-based experience to share life’s highs and lows together and be supportive of each other. Next Chance LLC also has another beautiful home a short distance away in East Falmouth known as “Round Pond”. This house offers all the structure and support you find at The Farm with a focus on more of a “graduate” program. Denise Donovan is an assistant clerk magistrate at the Boston Municipal Court Department’s Central Division. She began working at the Boston Municipal Court in the Probation Department in 1994.
MASH or Massachusetts Alliance for Sober Living is A Great Resource When Starting Your Sober Living Home
Our mission at NATIONAL ALLIANCE FOR RECOVERY RESIDENCES (NARR) is to enhance access to quality recovery residences by setting standards, providing education, and advocating for those in addiction recovery. Transition (e.g. entry, phase movement and exit) rituals promote residents’ sense of belonging and confer progressive status and increasing opportunities within the recovery living environment and community. In 2007, eight sober home operators established the nonprofit Massachusetts Alliance for Sober Housing. Legislation in 2014 created voluntary certification of Massachusetts sober homes, and MASH began managing voluntary statewide sober home certification in 2016.
- Our homes and their atmospheres are nurtured by the guests they provide for.
- Successful sober homes establish and reinforce healthy lifestyles, provide a safe and stable place to live, conduct meaningful activities, and build relationships and social networks for support.
- (e) The director shall periodically evaluate the quality of training being provided to operators seeking certification and the integrity and efficacy of the accreditation program.
- Verification that furnishings are typical of those in single family homes or apartments as opposed to institutional settings.
- This house offers all the structure and support you find at The Farm with a focus on more of a “graduate” program.
- Neighborhood associations and local governments engage with operators to address concerns such as safety or community impact.
Faith House #7
Faith House #7 is an all male recovery house located in Dorchester, MA. “Our calling is to provide a safe harbor from which re overlong individuals can heal and grow. It is our experience that those suffering in active addiction are wonderful people afflicted with a horrible disease. Addiction does not only ravage the lives of those who are actively using, but also the lives of those who love them the amphetamine addiction treatment most.
Design – Build
Easing the transition back into responsible adulthood. It is a family atmosphere of women working in a program of recovery while developing a network of sober support. Regardless of when a resident moves out, Nicki’s Place will always be home. Guests feel safe, comfortable and supported at all times.
Everything You Need to Open Your Sober Living Home in Massachusetts
Sober homes provide mutual support, emphasize independent living skills, and depend on peer leadership. They are not licensed and are not funded by the state. NARR has since released two updates to the standards, first in October 2015 and then in 2018. The third version of the NARR standards provides more explicit guidance to providers, including metrics for evaluating the peer support components of a residence’s recovery environment. What’s the difference between a sober home and a recovery residence? Recovery residences —formerly known as halfway houses — are licensed residential treatment programs, while Massachusetts sober homes are peer-led and do not provide treatment.
» Certified Sober Homes
27.d Documentation that residents are formally linked with the community such as job search, education, family services, health and/or housing programs. Ideally, eligibility to deliver services includes lived experience recovering from substance use disorders and the ability to reflect recovery principles. Project Cope is a Bridgewell Women’s Program located in Lynn, MA. It is a six-month residential treatment program for women with substance use disorders. The women here support one another by holding each other accountable, asking for help when needed, and celebrating each other’s successes.
Partner Sober Home and Halfway House Listings
Our organization also provides supervision and training for sober homes, and maintains a database of more than 180 MASH-certified sober homes. (f) The bureau shall prepare, publish and disseminate a list of alcohol and drug free housing certified pursuant to this section; provided, however, that the list shall be updated bimonthly. The list shall be disseminated to the director of the division of drug rehabilitation and to each state agency or vendor with a statewide contract that provides substance use disorder treatment services. The list shall also be posted on the website established pursuant to section 18.