In Allston’s Brazilian Community, New Arrivals Suffer in Overcrowded Apartments
BOSTON — When Zilda, her brother, and her two children first arrived in the United States from Brazil in 2021, they had to share everything. They lived in a three-bedroom apartment in Brighton with five other tenants, many of whom slept in the living room. The nine individuals shared a kitchen and a single bathroom. In their bedroom, Zilda and her family were cramped together on a single bed.
The stress of their living situation was compounded by the constant fear of discovery by their landlord, who was unaware of the illegal subletting. The landlord’s nephew, living upstairs, eventually noticed an unusual number of people leaving for work each day and alerted his aunt, leading to their eviction.
Allston-Brighton, where rentals make up 90 percent of the housing stock, is notorious for overcrowded and poorly maintained units. The local housing market is infamous for facilitating cramped living conditions, particularly among the city’s student population, where multiple students often share a single unit.
City officials have enforced regulations to combat student overcrowding since a tragic incident in 2013, when a Boston University student perished in a fire in an illegal apartment devoid of a second exit. Despite these efforts, the Brazilian and Central American immigrant communities in Allston have long faced similar overcrowded and hazardous living conditions, which have worsened since the Covid-19 pandemic exacerbated the housing crisis.
Many immigrants now find themselves living in units housing as many as 13 people, oftentimes in informal sublets with verbal or minimally written agreements. Subtenants have little power over their living situations and frequently contend with severe restrictions on their use of common areas like kitchens, and even heating in the winter.
In recent months, numerous residents from Allston-Brighton shared their stories, illustrating a problem that has intensified as the influx of immigrants has surged and rental costs have soared. Heloisa M. Galvão, executive director of the Brazilian Women’s Group, noted that a staggering 80 percent of inquiries they receive involve families living in single rooms, often forced to rent out communal spaces like living rooms or corners of kitchens.
Throughout various interviews conducted in Portuguese, residents conveyed physical dangers from their crowded living conditions and voiced the overwhelming mental stress tied to sharing small spaces with numerous people.
“We used to see rats wandering at night, and I was fearful of my baby being born under such conditions,” Zilda described. “Life is really harsh because no one enjoys living this way.”
Geilson, a Brazilian painter who arrived in Watertown in 2021, experienced a similar struggle. He paid $1,200 a month for a single bedroom but was restricted from using common areas. Access to the kitchen was limited to once a week, forcing him to store and prepare all his food in his room. During winter, he relied on a small space heater given by a coworker, under the watchful eye of a subletter who controlled the heat.
Parents expressed concerns that their children were especially vulnerable in these settings. Many reported that their children struggled to cope with the limitations of a communal living situation, which could hinder crucial developmental growth. Some children faced behavioral issues due to being confined to bedrooms, while parental concerns grew over childcare arrangements in such crowded apartments, often leaving kids with strangers.
Alessandra Fisher, director of immigrant integration at the Massachusetts Alliance of Portuguese Speakers, emphasized the serious trauma that can accompany childhood development in overcrowded situations, noting that the families often feel as if they have no other choices.
For Zilda, now secured in a stable three-bedroom apartment and working as a house cleaner, her past experiences left her feeling disheartened. “The most painful part is seeing your children,” she reflected. “We just want to offer them basic comfort.” Mirliane Mendes, a house cleaner who shares a Brighton apartment with her two children, described the isolating feeling of living in overcrowded accommodations:
“You feel abandoned,” she noted. “No one speaks to anyone.”
The combined physical and emotional toll of living under constant threat of eviction compounds the difficulties faced by these immigrant families. Many households have to keep their arrangements discreet to avoid being discovered by landlords, which leads to heightened anxiety. Safi Chalfin-Smith from the Brazilian Worker Center stated that instances of eviction for families doubling up are increasingly common.
After being evicted from her Brighton apartment, Zilda found herself in a panic. “I was scared because it was just me and my children. How was I supposed to find a house?” she recalled. Fortunately, her daughter was able to assist with securing a one-bedroom apartment.
Although the challenges of overcrowding are well-documented, they have persisted for decades. The Brazilian immigrant population in Allston has grown since the 1980s, largely because of economic factors driving individuals to seek opportunity in the U.S. Many of these early arrivals faced similar obstacles in finding affordable housing, leading to overcrowded living situations.
According to data, the Brazilian population in Eastern Massachusetts has ballooned from a few thousand in 1980 to over 100,000 in recent years. With the growing number of immigrants in the area, the existing housing crisis has only been compounded, especially following the spike in arrivals during the pandemic.
Community advocates indicate that many families resort to temporary housing in Allston-Brighton while figuring out their next steps. Despite the presence of resources and community support, the fear of eviction often deter families from seeking assistance. Galvão highlights the primary concern of fear, urging families to speak up about unsafe living conditions, as all tenants have rights regardless of their status.
The city’s Inspectional Services Department is designed to support occupants in unsafe living conditions without the threat of eviction, focusing exclusively on violations of sanitary codes. However, challenges remain regarding the nature of overcrowding, and options for housing assistance are often limited due to long waitlists and insufficient resources.
Despite the challenges, it is clear that addressing overcrowding among immigrant families in Allston-Brighton is crucial in redefining the housing landscape and ensuring that everyone has access to safe, stable living conditions.
