Short-term rental (Airbnb) rules in Carlisle, Massachusetts
Carlisle has no short-term rental bylaw, license or registration. Zoning lets a homeowner rent rooms to up to three people at a time, regular or transient, as an accessory use; an ADU can be rented short-term only if the owner lives in the main house. You still must register with the Massachusetts Department of Revenue.
| Local STR license or registration | None found in Carlisle's bylaws [1] |
| Renting rooms in your home | Allowed as accessory use for up to 3 persons, regular or transient [1] |
| ADU as short-term rental | Only if the main home is owner-occupied [2] |
| Short-term rental definition | As defined in M.G.L. c. 64G, s. 1 [3] |
No local short-term rental rules
Neither Carlisle's Zoning Bylaw (May 2026) nor its General Bylaws (August 2026) contain a short-term rental licensing, registration, fee or cap provision. There is no local minimum stay or occupancy rule specific to Airbnb or VRBO rentals.
Renting rooms
Among the accessory uses allowed as of right in General Residence Districts A and B is renting rooms or furnishing table board in a dwelling to no more than three persons, whether regular or transient [1]. That provision is the closest the bylaw comes to addressing short-term guests in an occupied home. The bylaw doesn't directly say whether renting out an entire house for short stays counts as ordinary single-family use, so check with the Building Commissioner before listing a whole home.
Accessory dwelling units
The ADU section adopts the state definition of short-term rental [3]. A Protected Use ADU may be rented short-term only if the main home on the lot is owner-occupied; otherwise the ADU can't be used as a short-term rental [2]. Long-term rental of an ADU isn't restricted, and neither unit has to be owner-occupied for long-term renting. State law expressly allows towns to restrict short-term rental of ADUs.
State requirements still apply
Even without local rules, Massachusetts requires short-term rental operators to register each unit with the Department of Revenue, collect the state room occupancy excise, and carry liability insurance (see the state rules on this page).
See how Carlisle compares with 8+ other Massachusetts towns on short-term rentals (airbnb / vrbo) →
Next steps
- Ask the Building Department (978-369-6689) whether your planned rental (rooms vs. whole house) fits the zoning bylaw's accessory-use provisions.
- If you plan to rent an ADU short-term, confirm you live in the main house; the town checks Town Clerk residency records.
- Register the property with the Massachusetts Department of Revenue on MassTaxConnect before your first booking.
Common questions
- Do I need a license for an Airbnb in Carlisle, Massachusetts?
- No. Carlisle has no short-term rental bylaw, license or registration. You still must register with the Massachusetts Department of Revenue.
- Can I rent rooms in my home in Carlisle, Massachusetts?
- Yes. Zoning lets a homeowner rent rooms to up to three people at a time, regular or transient, as an accessory use.
- Can I rent my ADU short-term in Carlisle, Massachusetts?
- Only if the owner lives in the main house.
- Is Airbnb legal in Carlisle, Massachusetts?
- Carlisle has no short-term rental bylaw, so none was found restricting it. You still must register with the Massachusetts Department of Revenue.
Massachusetts' short-term rental law
Since July 1, 2019, M.G.L. c. 64G has taxed and regulated short-term rentals: stays of 31 days or less in a home, apartment, condo or room booked in advance.
State requirements:
- Register with the Department of Revenue (DOR) on MassTaxConnect and get a Certificate of Registration for each property. Post it in the unit.
- 14-day exemption: if you rent a property 14 days or fewer in a calendar year, no tax is due. You still have to register and file DOR's declaration by January 15 each year. Go over 14 days and you owe tax on every day, including the first 14.
- State room occupancy excise: 5.7% of rent (including cleaning and booking fees).
- Local taxes on top, if your town has adopted them: a local excise of up to 6% (6.5% in Boston), and a community impact fee of up to 3%. The fee applies to "professionally managed" units (an operator with 2 or more units in a town, other than units in the owner's own 1 to 3 family home) and, by separate vote, to units in an owner-occupied 2 or 3 family house. Barnstable County towns add 2.75% for a regional water fund.
- Insurance: at least $1 million liability coverage per unit, unless the booking platform provides equal coverage (c. 175, §4F).
Towns may go further (c. 64G, §14). They can require local licenses and inspections, cap the number of days or units, limit where rentals are allowed, or ban them entirely.
What the bylaw says
- Sec. 3.2.1.11.4, Zoning Bylaws (May 18, 2026), p. 10
3.2.1.11.4 The renting of rooms or the furnishing of table board in a dwelling to not more than three (3) persons, whether regular or transient.
- Sec. 5.6.5.8, Zoning Bylaws (May 18, 2026), p. 45
If the Principal Dwelling is owner-occupied, then the Protected Use ADU may be used as a Short-term Rental, as defined in M.G.L. c. 64G, s. 1. Otherwise, a Protected Use ADU shall not be used as a Short-term Rental.
- Sec. 5.6.2 Definitions, Zoning Bylaws (May 18, 2026), p. 44
Short-term Rental. Short-term rental, as defined in M.G.L. c. 64G, s. 1.