Medford, MA Short-Term Rentals: Short-Term Rental Permits (2026)

Section 94-8.4.3 of the Medford Revised Ordinances makes clear that no residential unit may be offered as a short-term rental except in compliance with every provision of § 94-8.4, and § 94-8.4.13 sets the registration gateway: an operator must register with the building department, online or on a paper form the department prescribes, to be listed in a database of operators permitted to offer short-term rentals. At registration, the operator must certify under subsection 1 that they either own the unit or are a tenant using it as their primary residence with the owner's permission, and that offering it as a short-term rental complies with any applicable condominium documents, ordinances, leases, and other governing documents.

Registration is tied to both the specific unit and the specific operator under subsection 3, so it does not transfer automatically when the unit is sold; a new operator must re-register with the building department and obtain a new registration number before continuing to list the unit. Registration also feeds the compliance checks elsewhere in the chapter: an operator should not remain registered while the unit carries an outstanding violation under § 94-8.4.7, and the building department can demand the retained compliance records required by § 94-8.4.9 at any time. Offering an unregistered unit as a short-term rental is itself an enforceable violation under § 94-8.4.14.