Short-term rentals in Boston, Massachusetts: Regulation, compliance, and impact

Short-term rentals (STRs) expanded rapidly in Boston during the 2010s amid rising tourism, growing housing affordability pressures, and concerns about gentrification. In response, Boston adopted an STR ordinance in 2018, enforced from 2019, to preserve housing supply and restrict investor-owned units. While prior research suggests STR regulations can reduce supply, enforcement dynamics and host practices and perceptions remain underexplored. This study addresses these gaps through a mixed-methods evaluation of Boston’s STR regulations. First, we estimated zip-code-level Difference-in-Differences models using AirDNA STR data and U.S. Census neighborhood indicators, benchmarking Boston against major U.S. cities. Second, we conducted semi-structured interviews with licensed STR operators and city officials to examine host decision-making, perceptions of regulation, and enforcement constraints. Third, we conducted forensic analysis of major hosts to identify patterns of rule evasion. Our results indicate a substantial decline in STR supply following enforcement, with listings falling by approximately 57%. The regulations reduced both occasional “sharing economy” listings and professional STR supply, producing broadly similar proportional declines across listing types. However, a gradual rebound of professionally managed entire-home listings and evidence from interviews and forensic analysis suggest persistent non-compliance facilitated by low fines, limited enforcement capacity, and difficult-to-verify exemptions.