This data, maintained by the Mayor’s Office of Housing (MOH), is an inventory of all income-restricted units in the city. This data includes public housing owned by the Boston Housing Authority (BHA), privately- owned housing built with funding from DND and/or on land that was formerly City-owned, and privately-owned housing built without any City subsidy, e.g., created using Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) or as part of the Inclusionary Development Policy (IDP). Information is gathered from a variety of sources, including the City's IDP list, permitting and completion data from the Inspectional Services Department (ISD), newspaper advertisements for affordable units, Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation’s (CEDAC) Expiring Use list, and project lists from the BHA, the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), MassHousing, and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), among others. The data is meant to be as exhaustive and up-to-date as possible, but since many units are not required to report data to the City of Boston, MOH is constantly working to verify and update it. See the data dictionary for more information on the structure of the data and important notes. The database only includes units that have a deed-restriction. It does not include tenant-based (also known as mobile) vouchers, which subsidize rent, but move with the tenant and are not attached to a particular unit. There are over 22,000 tenant-based vouchers in the city of Boston which provide additional affordability to low- and moderate-income households not accounted for here. The Income-Restricted Housing report can be directly accessed here:
https://www.boston.gov/sites/default/files/file/2023/04/Income%20Restricted%20Housing%202022_0.pdf

Learn more about income-restricted housing (as well as other types of affordable housing) here: https://www.boston.gov/affordable-housing-boston#income-restricted

The median rent for one- and two-bedroom apartments in Boston, Massachusetts, amounted to about 2,302 U.S. dollars by the end of 2023. Rents decreased slightly after the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic,this trend reversed in 2021 and as of December 2023, the annual rental growth stood at 3.32 percent. Among the different states in the U.S., Massachusetts ranks as one of the most expensive rental markets.

Click here to check Short-Term Rental Eligibility

Boston's ordinance on short-term rentals is designed to incorporate the growth of the home-share industry into the City's work to create affordable housing for all residents. We want to preserve housing for residents while allowing Bostonians to benefit from this new industry. Starting on on January 1, 2019, short-term rentals in Boston will need to register with the City of Boston.

Eligibility for every unit in the City of Boston is dependant on the following six criteria:

• No affordability covenant restrictions
• Compliance with housing laws and codes
• No violations of laws regarding short-term rental use
• Owner occupied
• Two- or three-family dwelling
• Residential use classification

The Short-Term Rental Eligibility Dataset leverages information, wherever possible, about these criteria. For additional details and information about these criteria, please visit https://www.boston.gov/short-term-rentals.

ABOUT THIS DATASET

In June 2018, a citywide ordinance established new guidelines and regulations for short-term rentals in Boston. Registration opened January 1, 2019. The Short-Term Rental Eligibility Dataset was created to help residents, landlords, and City officials determine whether a property is eligible to be registered as a short-term rental.

The Short-Term Rental Eligibility Dataset currently joins data from the following datasets and is refreshed nightly:

• Live Street Address Management (SAM) Addresses.
• Assessing Online.
• Building and Property Violations
• Problem Properties
• Income-Restricted Properties
• STR Registration Data

HOW TO DETERMINE ELIGIBILITY FOR SHORT-TERM RENTAL REGISTRATION

1. ** Open** the Short-Term Rental Eligibility Dataset. In the dataset's search bar, enter the address of the property you are seeking to register.

2. Find the row containing the correct address and unit of the property you are seeking. This is the information we have for your unit.

3. Look at the columns marked as “Home-Share Eligible,” “Limited-Share Eligible,” and “Owner-Adjacent Eligible.”

   • A “yes” under any of these columns means your unit IS eligible for registration under that short-term rental type. Click here for a description of short-term rental types.
   • A “no” under any of these columns means your unit is NOT eligible for registration under that short-term rental type. Click here for a description of short-term rental types.

4. If your unit has a “yes” under “Home-Share Eligible,” “Limited-Share Eligible,” or “Owner-Adjacent Eligible,” you can register your unit here.

WHY IS MY UNIT LISTED AS “NOT ELIGIBLE”?

If you find that your unit is listed as NOT eligible, and you would like to understand more about why, you can use the Short-Term Rental Eligibility Dataset to learn more. The following columns measure each of the six eligibility criteria in the following ways:

1. No affordability covenant restrictions

   • A “yes” in the “Income Restricted” column tells you that the unit is marked as income restricted and is NOT eligible.
     
     
   • The “Income Restricted” column measures whether the unit is subject to an affordability covenant, as reported by the Department of Neighborhood Development and/or the Boston Planning and Development Agency.
     
     
   • For questions about affordability covenants, contact the Department of Neighborhood Development.
     
     

2. Compliance with housing laws and codes

   • A “yes” in the “Problem Properties” column tells you that this unit is considered a “Problem Property” by the Problem Properties Task Force and is NOT eligible.
     
     
   • Learn more about how “Problem Properties” are defined here.
     
     
   • A “yes” in the “Problem Property Owner” column tells you that the owner of this unit also owns a “Problem Property,” as reported by the Problem Properties Task Force.
     
     
   • Owners with any properties designated as a Problem Property are NOT eligible.
     
     
   • No unit owned by the owner of a “Problem Property” may register a short-term rental.
     
     
   • Learn more about how “Problem Properties” are defined here.
     
     
   • The “Open Violation Count” column tells you how many open violations the unit has. Units with any open violations are NOT eligible. Violations counted include: violations of the sanitary, building, zoning, and fire code; stop work orders; and abatement orders.
     
     
   • NOTE: Violations written before 1/1/19 that are still open will make a unit NOT eligible until these violations are resolved.
     
     
   • If your unit has an open violation, visit these links to appeal your violation(s) or pay your code violation fine(s).
     
     
   • The “Violations in the Last 6 Months” column tells you how many violations the unit has received in the last six months. Units with three or more violations, whether open or closed, are NOT eligible.
     
     
   • NOTE: Only violations written on or after 1/1/19 will count against this criteria.
     
     
   • If your unit has an open violation, visit these links to appeal your violation(s) or pay your code violation fine(s).
     
     
   • How to comply with housing laws and codes:
     
     
   • Have an open violation? Visit these links to appeal your violation(s) or pay your code violation fine(s).
     
     
   • Have questions about problem properties? Visit Neighborhood Service’s Problem Properties site.
     
     

3. No violations of laws regarding short-term rental use

   • A “yes” in the “Legally Restricted” column tells you that there is a complaint against the unit that finds

     • A legal restriction that prohibits the use of the unit as a Short-Term Rental under local, state, or federal law, OR

     • legal restriction that prohibits the use of the unit as a Short-Term Rental under condominium bylaws.

     • Units with legal restrictions found upon investigation are NOT eligible.
       
       

     • If the investigation of a complaint against the unit yields restrictions of the nature detailed above, we will mark the unit with a “yes” in this column. Until such complaint-based investigations begin, all units are marked with “no.”
       
       

     • NOTE: Currently no units have a “legally restricted” designation.
       
       

4. Owner-occupied

   • A “no” in the “Unit Owner-Occupied” column tells you that there is NO Residential Tax Exemption filed for that unit via the Assessing Department, and that unit is automatically categorized as NOT eligible for the following Short-Term Rental types:

     • Home-Share
     • Limited-Share
       
       
     • Residential Tax Exemption indicates that a unit is owner-occupied and generates a “yes” in the “Unit Owner-Occupied” column.
       
       

     • Owners are not required to file a Residential Tax Exemption in order to be eligible to register a unit as a Short-Term Rental.
       
       

     • If you would like to apply for Residential Tax Exemption, you can apply here.
       
       

     • If you are the owner-occupant of a unit and you have not filed for Residential Tax Exemption, you can still register your unit by proving owner-occupancy.
       

     • It is recommended that you submit proof of residency in your short-term rental registration application to expedite the process of proving owner-occupancy (see

In District of Columbia, the average rent per square foot was 2.95 U.S. dollars in 2018, whereas renters in Oregon were expected to pay half as much in rent per square foot. DC was the most expensive state for renters, followed by New York, Hawaii, Massachusetts and California.

Why is DC so expensive?

District of Columbia is the center of the U.S. political system with all three branches of federal government sitting there: Congress (legislative), President (executive) and the Supreme Court (judicial). The above average household incomes of its residents mean that high rents are still sustainable for the rental market.

Limited space in DC

DC has the largest share of apartment dwellers in the country. This is most likely due to limited space, as the federal district has a much higher population density than the states. The political importance of DC and the high population density suggest that the federal district is likely to retain its spot as the most expensive rental market in the future.

RentSmart Boston compiles data from BOS:311 and the City's Inspectional Services Division to give prospective tenants a more complete picture of the homes and apartments they are considering renting, assisting them in understanding any previous issues with the property, including: housing violations, building violations, enforcement violations, housing complaints, sanitation requests, and/or civic maintenance requests.

You can look up individual properties using the RentSmart dashboard here.

In 2024, households in California needed an hourly wage of over 47 U.S. dollars to afford the rent of a two-bedroom apartment. Massachusetts had the second-least affordable two-bedroom apartments, as a household would have to earn at least around 45 U.S. dollars per hour in order to afford rent payments. These figures are considerably higher than the average minimum wage in place in many states. There was no state in which a minimum wage worker could afford rent for the average two-bedroom apartment, if they only worked 40 hours a week. Where are the least affordable counties and metros? The least affordable rents were predominately in Californian counties and metropolitan areas in 2024. District of Columbia has one of the highest minimum wages in the country, which stood at 17 U.S. dollars per hour as of January 2024. Thus, the affordability of two-bedroom apartments highlights how disproportionately high housing costs are in the state.

Myanmar Household Expenditure: MA: Urban: NF: House Rent & Repairs data was reported at 5,921.030 MMK in 2012. This records an increase from the previous number of 2,573.110 MMK for 2006. Myanmar Household Expenditure: MA: Urban: NF: House Rent & Repairs data is updated yearly, averaging 1,595.125 MMK from Dec 1989 (Median) to 2012, with 6 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 10,994.900 MMK in 2005 and a record low of 36.010 MMK in 1989. Myanmar Household Expenditure: MA: Urban: NF: House Rent & Repairs data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Central Statistical Organization. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Myanmar – Table MM.H005: Household Expenditure Survey: Monthly Household Expenditure: Urban.

Malaysia Exp Per Household: Sabah: MA: HW: Imputed Rent data was reported at 471.850 MYR in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 420.675 MYR for 2014. Malaysia Exp Per Household: Sabah: MA: HW: Imputed Rent data is updated yearly, averaging 333.962 MYR from May 2005 (Median) to 2016, with 4 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 471.850 MYR in 2016 and a record low of 216.730 MYR in 2005. Malaysia Exp Per Household: Sabah: MA: HW: Imputed Rent data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Department of Statistics. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Malaysia – Table MY.H039: Household Expenditure Survey: Sabah.

United States GDPS: 2009p: MA: PI: Fin, Insurance, Real Estate, Rent & Lease (FIRR data was reported at 101.833 USD bn in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 99.570 USD bn for 2016. United States GDPS: 2009p: MA: PI: Fin, Insurance, Real Estate, Rent & Lease (FIRR data is updated yearly, averaging 86.345 USD bn from Dec 1997 (Median) to 2017, with 21 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 101.833 USD bn in 2017 and a record low of 64.254 USD bn in 1997. United States GDPS: 2009p: MA: PI: Fin, Insurance, Real Estate, Rent & Lease (FIRR data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Bureau of Economic Analysis. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.A104: NIPA 2013: Gross Domestic Product by State: 2009 Price: Chain Linked.

Morocco MA: BoP: Current Account: Primary Income: Others: Rent: Debit data was reported at 0.000 USD mn in 2017. This stayed constant from the previous number of 0.000 USD mn for 2016. Morocco MA: BoP: Current Account: Primary Income: Others: Rent: Debit data is updated yearly, averaging 0.000 USD mn from Dec 2015 (Median) to 2017, with 3 observations. Morocco MA: BoP: Current Account: Primary Income: Others: Rent: Debit data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by International Monetary Fund. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Morocco – Table MA.IMF.BOP: BPM6: Balance of Payments: Detailed Presentation: Annual.

Morocco MA: BoP: Current Account: Primary Income: Others: Rent: Credit data was reported at 76.809 USD mn in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 62.258 USD mn for 2016. Morocco MA: BoP: Current Account: Primary Income: Others: Rent: Credit data is updated yearly, averaging 56.511 USD mn from Dec 2014 (Median) to 2017, with 4 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 76.809 USD mn in 2017 and a record low of 49.723 USD mn in 2014. Morocco MA: BoP: Current Account: Primary Income: Others: Rent: Credit data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by International Monetary Fund. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Morocco – Table MA.IMF.BOP: BPM6: Balance of Payments: Detailed Presentation: Annual.

Myanmar Household Expenditure: MA: Rural: NF: House Rent & Repairs data was reported at 2,937.740 MMK in 2012. This records an increase from the previous number of 910.930 MMK for 2006. Myanmar Household Expenditure: MA: Rural: NF: House Rent & Repairs data is updated yearly, averaging 606.750 MMK from Dec 1989 (Median) to 2012, with 6 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 2,937.740 MMK in 2012 and a record low of 21.440 MMK in 1989. Myanmar Household Expenditure: MA: Rural: NF: House Rent & Repairs data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Central Statistical Organization. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Myanmar – Table MM.H006: Household Expenditure Survey: Monthly Household Expenditure: Rural.

Graph and download economic data for Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers: Rent of Primary Residence in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH (CBSA) (CUURA103SEHA) from Dec 1914 to May 2025 about Boston, ME, NH, CT, primary, MA, rent, urban, consumer, CPI, inflation, price index, indexes, price, and USA.

Malaysia Exp Per Household: RR: MA: HW: Actual Rental Paid data was reported at 35.280 MYR in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 31.358 MYR for 2014. Malaysia Exp Per Household: RR: MA: HW: Actual Rental Paid data is updated yearly, averaging 27.059 MYR from May 2005 (Median) to 2016, with 4 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 35.280 MYR in 2016 and a record low of 17.940 MYR in 2005. Malaysia Exp Per Household: RR: MA: HW: Actual Rental Paid data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Department of Statistics. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Malaysia – Table MY.H038: Household Expenditure Survey.

Malaysia Exp Per Household: RR: MA: HW: Imputed Rent data was reported at 354.520 MYR in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 301.258 MYR for 2014. Malaysia Exp Per Household: RR: MA: HW: Imputed Rent data is updated yearly, averaging 247.029 MYR from May 2005 (Median) to 2016, with 4 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 354.520 MYR in 2016 and a record low of 151.630 MYR in 2005. Malaysia Exp Per Household: RR: MA: HW: Imputed Rent data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Department of Statistics. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Malaysia – Table MY.H038: Household Expenditure Survey.