Waltham is compliant with the MBTA Communities Act. The City Council adopted new zoning in December 2024 and finalized it in January 2025, allowing four unit multifamily buildings by right near the Brandeis/Roberts commuter rail station and near the Waverley station. The state required Waltham to zone for a capacity of 3,982 units, and the adopted plan provides for about 4,002. For owners and investors, it can expand what you are allowed to build on a Waltham parcel.
Waltham meets the MBTA Communities Act through zoning the City Council adopted in December 2024 and finalized in January 2025, just ahead of the state deadline. The zoning allows four unit multifamily buildings by right on about 55 acres near the Brandeis/Roberts commuter rail station and about 25 acres near the Waverley station on the Belmont line. As a commuter rail community, Waltham was required to zone for a capacity of 3,982 multifamily units, about 15 percent of its housing stock, and the plan it chose provides for roughly 4,002. Inside these areas, multifamily no longer needs a special permit.
The zoning focuses on two areas: about 55 acres near the Brandeis/Roberts commuter rail station in the southwest corner of the city, and about 25 acres near the Waverley station on the Belmont town line. The Brandeis/Roberts area sits right by Brandeis University, which matters for rental demand. Because the boundaries are parcel specific and some lots are excluded, the only reliable way to know if a property is in a district is to check it against the city's adopted zoning map. Send us the address and we will look it up.
Inside the districts, four unit multifamily buildings are allowed by right at a minimum density of 15 units per acre, a real change from Waltham zoning that across most of the city allows nothing denser than a single home or a duplex. That can turn a qualifying parcel into one where a small multifamily building is permitted as of right, with no special permit. The exact unit count depends on the lot and the district rules, so each parcel needs its own analysis.
If your parcel sits in a district, your development potential, and therefore your value, may be higher than the old zoning implied. What that means depends on who you are:
We run that analysis before clients buy, sell, or hold.
There are two ways to check, in order of speed:
| Waltham 3A detail | Figure |
|---|---|
| MBTA community category | Commuter Rail |
| Required multifamily zoning capacity | 3,982 units |
| Capacity the adopted plan provides | About 4,002 units |
| Capacity as share of housing stock | 15 percent |
| Compliance mechanism | Four unit zoning near the Brandeis/Roberts and Waverley stations, adopted December 2024 and finalized January 2025 |
| State compliance status | Compliant, on the EOHLC approval list |
| Typical current multifamily price point | $1,609,400 |
WALTHAM MBTA SECTION 3A
A free zoning and value check for Waltham owners and investors
Waltham's new zoning allows four unit multifamily by right near the Brandeis/Roberts and Waverley stations, and many parcels now carry development potential they did not have before. Send us your Waltham address and we will tell you whether it sits in a district, what it allows, and what that does to its value.
Yes. The City Council adopted compliant zoning in December 2024 and finalized it in January 2025, and Waltham is on the state's list of compliant communities.
Waltham was required to zone for a capacity of 3,982 multifamily units, about 15 percent of its housing stock, as a commuter rail community, and the plan it adopted provides for roughly 4,002.
No. It allows four unit multifamily buildings by right only near the Brandeis/Roberts and Waverley stations, and it permits housing rather than requiring it to be built.
Check the city's adopted MBTA Communities zoning map, or send us the address and we will confirm it.
It can, because by right multifamily potential adds development options a parcel did not have before. The effect depends on the specific lot.
Written by Ethan Piani-Hohmann, broker and founder of PH Realty Group, a Greater Boston brokerage focused on multifamily and investment property. Last updated May 2026