Short-Term Rentals in Revere, MA

If you live in Revere or are thinking about moving there, short-term rentals are one of those things you probably won't think about until they affect you directly. Revere has 10 specific rules on the books covering different aspects of short-term rentals, and some of them might surprise you.

Night Caps

Revere caps every short-term rental at six months total per calendar year. Municipal Code § 8.09.020 defines a short-term rental as a stay of fewer than thirty days that, added up across the year, cannot exceed a cumulative total of six months for that unit.

Key details: Annual cap: Six cumulative months per calendar year. Stay length: Each rental period must run under 30 days. Registry expires: December 31 of the year issued. Penalty: $490 per violation per day. Adopted: C.O. 21-211 (2021), amended C.O. 24-176 (2024).

Operating a short-term rental beyond what the registry and six-month annual definition permit is enforced under § 8.09.080: the City can fine the operator four hundred ninety dollars per violation per day, with each day of continued noncompliance counted as a separate violation, and can additionally issue a cease-and-desist order or seek a court injunction to stop the rental.

Occupancy Limits

Revere limits how many people can stay overnight in a short-term rental. Municipal Code § 8.09.030(B) caps occupancy at two persons per bedroom, not counting children under twelve who are related to or the legal ward of one of the bedroom's occupants.

Key details: Occupancy limit: 2 persons per bedroom. Exception: Children under 12 related to or ward of occupant excluded. Party cap: 6 unrelated renters per rental (whole-unit rentals). Bedroom count: Cannot exceed the dwelling's lawful bedroom count. Inspected by: STR enforcement office and Fire Dept. Office of Fire Prevention.

Exceeding the two-person-per-bedroom occupancy limit is a violation of Chapter 8.09 enforced under § 8.09.080: a fine of four hundred ninety dollars per violation, with each day the overcrowding continues counted as a separate violation, plus authority for the City to issue a cease-and-desist order or seek a court injunction against continued use as a short-term rental.

Taxes & Fees

Every Revere short-term rental pays a $300 annual registration fee plus the state room-occupancy excise and a locally set community impact fee before it can operate lawfully.

Key details: Annual registration fee: $300 per unit. Re-inspection fee: $50 after the first free re-inspection. Impact fee/excise: Set by council under MGL c.64G §§3A/3D. Insurance minimum: $250,000 liability coverage required. Delinquent tax bar: Unpaid local charges void STR eligibility.

Operating without paying the $300 annual fee or the required excise and impact fees violates Chapter 8.09 and draws a $490-per-day civil fine under § 8.09.080(A), with each day of continued noncompliance a separate violation; the city may also seek a cease-and-desist order or injunction. A unit delinquent on any local tax, fee, assessment or municipal charge is separately barred from short-term rental use altogether under § 8.09.060(F).

Noise Rules

Every Revere short-term rental operator must hand renters a written notice barring noise and disturbances that break the peace, tied to the city's general nuisance ordinance, before the party ever checks in.

Key details: Notice required: Written no-disturbance instruction to every renter. Posting size: 11 x 14 inch poster required in unit. Fine: $490 per violation per day. Three-strikes rule: 3 violations/year bars future STR use. Enforcing agency: STR enforcement office and Fire Department.

Any violation of Chapter 8.09, including a failure to give or post the noise notice, draws a fine of $490 per violation per day under § 8.09.080(A); each day of continued noncompliance counts as a separate violation. The city may also issue a cease-and-desist order or seek a court injunction to stop the rental. A unit tied to three or more substantiated violations, noise or otherwise, within one year becomes permanently ineligible for short-term rental registration under § 8.09.060(D), and enforcement runs through R.R.O. Chapter 1.12, Article II or III per § 8.09.080(B).

Primary-Residence-Only Rule

Revere only allows short-term rentals on properties where the operator actually lives. Municipal Code § 8.09.030(A) permits short-term rental solely of a primary residence unit or an owner-adjacent unit inside a building the operator owns and occupies, not investment property with no owner-occupancy nexus.

Key details: Eligible categories: Owner-adjacent unit or operator's primary residence only. License cap: No more than 2 STR licenses per dwelling. Party size: Up to 6 unrelated short-term renters per rental. Ownership change: Registration expires on transfer of ownership. Ineligible units: Non owner-occupied units barred under § 8.09.060(A).

A residential unit that does not meet the definition of an owner-adjacent unit or a primary residence unit is ineligible for short-term rental under § 8.09.060(A), and offering it anyway is enforced as a violation of the chapter under § 8.09.080: a fine of four hundred ninety dollars per violation per day, plus possible cease-and-desist and injunctive relief.

Compared to other cities, Revere takes a harder line on primary-residence-only rule. The enforcement and penalty structure reflects that.

Renting out a bedroom or an attached apartment inside your own Revere home, reached through your own front door, is not a short-term rental at all under Municipal Code § 8.09.015(A): the entire chapter's registration, cap, and fee rules simply do not apply to that arrangement.

Key details: Exclusion: Bedroom or attached apartment inside host's own home. Key condition: Not accessed exclusively through a separate entry. Effect: Chapter 8.09 registration and cap do not apply. Also excluded: Month-to-month tenancy-at-will arrangements. Not affected: Separate ordinances on lodging/rooming/boardinghouses still apply.

Because § 8.09.015(A) excludes this arrangement from the Short-Term Rentals chapter altogether, none of § 8.09.080's fines or cease-and-desist authority apply to it as such. A host who instead lets the room be accessed through its own separate exterior entrance, or who exceeds the boundaries of the exclusion, falls back under the full chapter and its four-hundred-ninety-dollar-per-day penalty for operating without registration.

Revere is more permissive than most cities when it comes to extended home share. That said, there are still limits.

Repeat Violator Strikes

A Revere short-term rental loses its right to operate for good once it racks up three violation findings in a single year, whether for noise, trash, disorderly conduct or any health and safety code.

Key details: Strike threshold: 3 violation findings in one year. Scope: STR rule violations or health/safety violations. Effect: Unit becomes permanently ineligible for STR. Other bars: Income-restricted, non-owner-occupied, HOA-barred units. Adopted: C.O. 21-211, August 23, 2021.

A unit found ineligible under § 8.09.060(D) cannot be listed, advertised or rented short-term in Revere going forward; the enforcement office removes it from the STR registry. Operating a short-term rental in violation of Chapter 8.09 separately draws a $490-per-day civil fine under § 8.09.080(A), plus a possible cease-and-desist order or court injunction, with each day of continued operation counted as its own violation.

This is one of the stricter rules in Revere's municipal code. If you are unsure whether your situation complies, it is worth checking with the city before proceeding.

Short-Term Rental Parking Rules

Revere's Short-Term Rental Ordinance (Revere Code Chapter 8.09, adopted by City Council August 24, 2020) does not impose a STR-specific parking ratio. Off-street parking for the dwelling unit is governed by Section 17.28 of the Revere Zoning Ordinance, which sets parking by district and use, and by Title 10 on-street rules administered by the Office of the Parking Clerk.

Key details: STR Code: Revere Code Ch. 8.09 (2020). Parking Standards: Zoning Sec. 17.28 (varies by district). Resident Sticker Program: Revere Code Ch. 10.34. STR-Specific Ratio: None in Ch. 8.09. Permit Authority: Office of the Parking Clerk.

Guest vehicles parked in posted resident-permit-only zones without a sticker are subject to citation and tow under Revere Code Chapter 10.34. Failure to provide the off-street parking required by Zoning Section 17.28 for the dwelling can be raised at the annual STR inspection and may delay registration renewal under Chapter 8.09.

Short-Term Rental Permits

Before listing a property, a Revere short-term rental operator must register with the short-term rental enforcement office, pay a three-hundred-dollar annual fee, and pass an inspection. Municipal Code § 8.09.040 spells out the application, the fee, and a twenty-one-day inspection deadline.

Key details: Annual fee: $300 per short-term rental unit. Inspection deadline: Within 21 days of paid application. Re-inspection: First free, $50 for each additional re-inspection. State registration: DOR Certificate of Registration under M.G.L. ch. 64G, § 6. Registry entry: Barred until certificate of inspection is issued.

Offering or advertising a property for short-term rental before completing registration under § 8.09.040 and receiving a certificate of inspection is a violation of Chapter 8.09, enforced under § 8.09.080 with a fine of four hundred ninety dollars per violation per day, plus authority for the City to issue a cease-and-desist order or seek a court injunction against the unregistered rental.

This is one of the stricter rules in Revere's municipal code. If you are unsure whether your situation complies, it is worth checking with the city before proceeding.

Insurance Requirements

Revere will not register a short-term rental without proof of liability coverage. Municipal Code § 8.09.040(A)(5) requires a valid insurance binder showing liability limits of at least two hundred fifty thousand dollars per incident, covering the property's use as a short-term rental.

Key details: Minimum coverage: $250,000 liability per incident. Proof required: Valid insurance binder submitted with application. Coverage scope: Must cover short-term rental use specifically. Registry gate: No registration without the binder, per § 8.09.040(D). Renewed on transfer: New owner must resubmit after ownership change.

A property missing the required liability insurance binder cannot be added to the short-term rental registry under § 8.09.040(D), and offering it for short-term rental without completing that registration is enforced under § 8.09.080: a fine of four hundred ninety dollars per violation per day, plus cease-and-desist and injunction authority for the City.

The Bottom Line

Revere is tougher than many cities when it comes to short-term rentals. Out of the 10 rules covered here, 3 are rated strict. If you are a homeowner, renter, or business owner in Revere, take the time to understand these requirements before they become a problem. Most violations come with fines, and some repeat violations can escalate.

All of the above reflects Revere's municipal code as of our last review. If you need specifics on fines, exemptions, or filing requirements, the detailed ordinance pages linked above have the full breakdown.