Understanding Boston’s Short-Term Rental Regulations

The city of Boston has implemented short-term rental regulations, including required registration for those looking to rent out their property through platforms like Airbnb. Boston, Massachusetts recently changed its short-term rental regulations in 2018 to better incorporate the growth of the home sharing industry while ensuring Boston’s residents have access to affordable housing. These regulations came into effect on January 1st of 2019, and require aspiring short-term and vacation rental owners to register their property with the city in order to list on home sharing platforms like Airbnb.

Summary of Boston’s Short-Term Rental Regulations

• Ensure your home is eligible to host short-term rentals.
• Register your property with the City of Boston as a short-term rental.
• Obtain a business certificate from the city clerk’s office.
• Display your registration number on all listings for your short-term rental property.

Boston’s Short-Term Rental Categories

The city of Boston defines a short-term rental as a rental stay that is less than 28 consecutive calendar days. Along with this, the city has categorised short-term rentals into three separate categories, each with separate requirements, yearly fee amounts, and distinctions for the property owners. 

Boston’s three short-term rental unit categories: 

• Limited share: A short term rental listing a portion of one’s primary residence for rent, with host present during all rentals. $25 fee a year. Occupancy is limited to three guest bedrooms or six guests, whichever is fewer.
• Home Share: Listing one’s primary residence for rent. Host not present during some or all of the rental duration. $200 fee per year. Occupancy is limited to five bedrooms or 10 guests, whichever is fewer.
• Owner-adjacent: Renting a full unit in the same two or three unit property as the owner’s primary residential unit. $200 fee per year.

Limited share and home share units must be an owner-operator’s primary residence. An owner-adjacent unit needs to be located within the same property as an owner-operator’s primary residence. Owner-adjacent units must be located in a two-family or three-family home. One can register the unit they are living in as a home share or limited share unit and one additional unit as an owner-adjacent unit. The city of Boston also specifies that a building owner can only offer one whole unit at a time. For example, if you have a home share unit and an owner-adjacent unit at your property, you cannot be away from the property and rent both at the same time. 

Primary residence is defined by the City of Boston as a property where the owner lives for at least nine months out of a 12-month period. When requested the owner must be able to demonstrate:

• They lived at the property for nine of the past 12 months or
• They plan to live in the property for nine of the next 12 months. 

Boston’s Short-Term Rental Requirements

In order to be eligible to register and rent one’s home on a short-term basis, property owners must first ensure their home is eligible, within a property classified as residential use, and does not violate any of the following criteria. The City of Boston has prepared a searchable database of Boston’s properties and their short-term rental eligibility, making it easier for you to check whether your property is eligible to host a short-term rental. 

Homes designated as the following cannot offer short-term rentals:

• Below market rate or income restricted
• Subject to affordability covenants
• Subject to rental assistance under local state or federal law

Along with these criteria, residences must not be subject of three or more violations of any city ordinance or state law within the last six months, and cannot have any outstanding violations relating to: 

• Short-term rental ordinance
• Excessive noise
• Improper disposal of trash
• Disorderly conduct 
• Sanitary, building and fire code violations.

Even if a property is classified under residential use, short-term rentals cannot be registered in the following buildings:

• Congregate living complexes
• Elderly housing
• Group residences
• Homeless shelters
• Orphanages
• Temporary dwelling structures
• Transitional housing

Along with the above restrictions and requirements, potential short-term rental units cannot be located within a problem property, or within a property owned by a problem property owner. You can find more information about problem properties in the City of Boston Code of Ordinances, Chapter 9-13.1 and Chapter 16-57.2.

Boston’s Short-Term Rental Regulations

Once you’ve ensured that your home meets the necessary requirements to host a short-term rental, you can sign up and register your property on the city of Boston’s short-term rental registration webpage. In order to register, you will need to provide Inspection Services with at least two of the following items as primary residence evidence:

• Proof of residential exemption
• Utility bill
• Voter registration
• Motor vehicle registration
• Deed
• Driver’s licence or state-issued identification

Once you’ve received your registration number from Inspectional Services, this number must be included on any listing offering the registered unit as a short-term rental. The short-term rental licence must be renewed each year, and does not transfer with the sale of the unit or property. If the property you’re registering for short-term rental contains long-term rental units, it must be renewed and up to date in the city’s long-term rental registry.

After registering your unit as a short-term rental, you must notify abutters about your unit’s registration within 30 days of receiving the short-term rental licence. Abutter is defined as any residential dwelling within 300 feet of the short-term rental unit. Along with this, short-term rental hosts must post a sign inside the unit that informs guests of the locations of fire extinguishers, fire exits, and pull fire alarms.

Violation of any of the STR laws or codes along with those mentioned above will result in a suspension of one’s short-term rental licence. The suspension will last for as long as the violation exists.

Boston Short-Term Rental Business Certificate

Along with registering your property as a short-term rental with the City of Boston, aspiring hosts will also need to obtain a business certificate through the city clerk’s office. In order to apply for a business certificate, you will need to fill out the business certificate form which includes a filing fee of $65. Once issued, the business certificate is valid for four years and must be renewed using the same business certificate form linked above. 

In order to file for a business certificate for your short-term rental, you must have received your registration number from Inspectional Services, and you will need to include a copy of your registration number form. You can bring your documents, payment, and completed business certificate form to the City Clerk’s Office at Boston’s City Hall, or mail your documents, form, and payment to the address below.

Office of the City Clerk, 1 City Hall Square
Room 601, ATTN: Business Certificates
Boston, MA 02201
United States

We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the regulations discussed in this article. Regulations often change on a regular basis, and we advise you to research the current regulations for your location. While we do our best to keep the information updated, if you find an error, omission, or something that needs an update, please let us know.

Helpful Links Related to Short-Term Rental Regulation in Boston

City of Boston – Short-Term Rentals: https://www.boston.gov/departments/inspectional-services/short-term-rentals#unit-eligibility-criteria

City of Boston – Short-Term Rental Eligibility Database: https://data.boston.gov/dataset/short-term-rental-eligibility/resource/83621b97-9a00-4aa7-bf43-28cae04969d4 

City of Boston – About the Short-Term Rental Eligibility Database: https://data.boston.gov/dataset/short-term-rental-eligibility 

City of Boston – Short-Term Rental Ordinance: https://www.boston.gov/sites/default/files/document-file-08-2018/short-term_rental_ordinance.pdf 

City of Boston – Business Certificate: https://www.boston.gov/departments/city-clerk/how-apply-business-certificate#new-applicants 

City of Boston – Business Certificate Form: https://www.boston.gov/sites/default/files/new-biz-cert.pdf

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