Document and Entity Information (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2011	Jun. 30, 2011	Mar. 01, 2012 Class A	Mar. 01, 2012 Class B
Entity Registrant Name	NEW ENGLAND REALTY ASSOCIATES LIMITED PARTNERSHIP
Entity Central Index Key	0000746514
Document Type	10-K
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2011
Amendment Flag	false
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	No
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Smaller Reporting Company
Entity Public Float		$ 48,059,978
Entity Partnership Units Outstanding			105,188	24,982
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2011
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY