Massachusetts will soon face a moment of reckoning with its hundreds of sober homes and those who rely on them. New regulations will take effect Sept. 1, at which point only certified homes will be eligible to receive referrals from the official sources that account for the bulk of admittances.

Sober homes, also known as Alcohol and Drug Free Housing (ADF housing), are private entities that provide residential space for individuals in recovery. They can be incorporated as either for-profit or non-profit organizations.

Estimates on the number of sober homes in Massachusetts vary wildly, said Richard Winant, president of the Massachusetts Association for Sober Housing (MASH), which administers the accreditation program. State officials estimate 300 to 350 homes operate across the commonwealth, but no comprehensive registry exists.

Residents and public officials alike have bemoaned the ever-growing and largely self-regulated sober-home industry, turning a vulnerable population into a valuable commodity. Rent in sober homes can run about $160 a week, officials said, with residents staying weeks, months, even years.

“At their very best, these programs fill a central need for individuals in recovery, creating a positive and supportive environment for clients and actively working to be good neighbors in their respective communities,” state Rep. Evandro Carvalho of Dorchester and Boston City Councillor Frank Baker wrote in a letter to the Reporter in March.

“At their very worst,” the letter continued, “program operators prey on their clients and turn a blind eye to substance use and abuse among the tenants they serve, often wreaking havoc on a neighborhood with constant calls being made to police, fire, EMS, and Inspectional Services departments.”

Which is where certification enters the picture. The process is voluntary and a guide is available on mashsoberhousing.org. Sober home owners or potential owners first commit to standards of cleanliness, care, and ethics.

Then MASH coordinates with the property owner and an inspector from Recovery Homes Collaborative to evaluate the property. The Department of Public Health (DPH) requires inspections to be conducted through an independent contractor to avoid any perceived conflicts of interest between approving new sober homes and MASH members, many of whom operate their own sober home facilities.

If everything is in order, the home management team must complete training through MASH on the day-to-day operation of a sober home. After a final approval, the home receives a one-year certification and is ready to open.

Most residents of sober houses are referred to them by the courts, probation officers, rehabilitation programs or other offices within the state system. Winant said a conservative estimate would peg about 85 percent of the sober home residents as official referrals.

The hundreds of uncredentialed sober homes would soon see their official referral channels dry up, giving them essentially three options: tough it out, go through the credentialing process, or close up shop.

Care experts and legislators alike are concerned about a lack of beds, Winant said. Ultimately, “I would rather have less beds, but it’s a safe, sober, supervised environment,” he said. “I don’t think anyone wins if someone goes to a place that isn’t safe, isn’t sober.”

According to the MASH website, which logs the approved homes, there are currently 10 that have been certified to operate in Dorchester. Two of them serve only men, five serve only women, and two are co-ed facilities.

Three of those houses are on Virginia Street in Uphams Corner and are run by Faith House Boston, which also operates three houses in other neighborhoods. A recovering addict himself, Manager Joe Gonsalzes said that the certification process was an obvious step in making sure the homes are up to caliber.

“I knew if was recovering, if I lived in in a shithole, pardon my language, it wasn’t going to help me,” Gonsalzes, 59, told the Reporter. “I’ve been in a program for six months and I’m out working during the day. When I come home, it’s important to have a place that’s peaceful, that’s clean... it’s a reflection of where I’m at.”

Since the certification process began in January, Winant said, more than 800 beds in about 68 sober homes have been certified. But state expectations have so far clashed with the practicalities of evaluating hundreds of homes.

Cheryl Kennedy-Perez, manager of housing and homeless services at the state health department, told the Boston Globe in April that she hoped to certify 200 homes by Sept. 1. The goal is now 200 homes by the end of the year, Winant said, a practical improbability with 132 to go in just under four months. On a busy week, inspectors examine seven to eight properties, he said.

“It’s a work in progress, and to go from where we were a year ago, which was no regulations, no process, and kind of the wild Wild West to this,” Winant said, “we’ve made tremendous strides. Are we where we want to be? Absolutely not.”