Airbnb Legal Issues and Statistics: Boston

Airbnb Boston Regulations

In Boston, short-term rentals, including those listed on Airbnb, are subject to regulation by the city. The regulations were enacted in 2019 with the goal of ensuring that these rentals do not have a negative impact on the city’s housing market and residents.

Under the regulations, hosts are required to register with the city and obtain a permit before renting out their property on Airbnb. The permit costs $200 and must be renewed every year. Hosts are also required to display their permit number on any advertisements for their listing.

Additionally, the regulations place limits on the number of units that can be rented by a single host. Hosts can only rent out their primary residence for a maximum of 365 days per year. If the host is not present during the rental period, they can only rent out their unit for a maximum of 90 days per year.

The regulations also require hosts to collect and remit a 5.7% occupancy tax on each booking. This tax is in addition to the state and local taxes already collected by Airbnb.

Finally, the regulations include rules regarding noise levels and the number of guests allowed on the property at any given time. Hosts must ensure that their guests comply with these rules in order to avoid fines and penalties.

Overall, the regulations are intended to strike a balance between allowing short-term rentals like those on Airbnb to operate in the city while also protecting the interests of residents and the housing market. It is important for hosts and guests to be aware of these regulations and to comply with them in order to avoid any issues during their stay in Boston.

Boston Airbnb Statistics

The Rooms

Airbnb hosts can rent out entire properties, private or shared rooms.

1 569 – Airbnb listings in total
1 322 (84%) – entire properties
244 (16%) – private rooms
3 (0.3%) – shared rooms
$191 – average price per night

Guest Activity

Airbnb guests may leave a review after their stay, and these can be used to estimate Airbnb guests activity. However not all guests leave a review, so the actual activity could be higher.

An average income per month has been calculated by using the minimum stay, the average price per night and the total number of reviews.

$191 – average price per night
74% – estimated occupancy
$4435 – estimated average income generated per month

Host Activity

It is possible for a host to list multiple properties that they have available or different rooms which are available on the same property.

73% – Airbnb
13% – VRBO
14% – Both

Property Availability

Airbnb hosts have full freedom when it comes to selecting how available their property or rooms are. For instance, by utilizing the calendar tool, a host can set their property to be available for just one week in a year. Alternatively, another example is a host setting their rooms to be available for 11-months out of the 12.

Available
1-90
91-180
181-270
271-365

Properties
1183
346
248
607

Data Sources

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