🎯 STRisker: Bulletin - Pittsfield, MA
Pittsfield Imposes 150-Day Cap in New Short-Term Rental Ordinance
Pittsfield Finally Defines STRs — and Limits Them
Pittsfield is officially hitting the brakes on short-term rentals — and the move is sparking plenty of conversation around housing and neighborhood livability. At its September 9th meeting, the City Council passed a new ordinance defining and regulating short-term rentals (STRs) across the city. The headline change? A hard cap of 150 rental days per year for residential properties.
City Planner Kevin Rayner explained that the 150-day figure is about balance. “How many days does it become more of a short-term rental than a housing situation?” he asked councilors. The goal, he said, was to curb investor-driven rentals while still letting homeowners earn extra income.
The debate was far from one-sided. Ward 6 Councilor Dina Lampiasi argued for a tighter 90-day cap, saying the higher limit won’t do enough to ease Pittsfield’s housing crunch. “We have a very real issue of housing, and this is not helping,” she warned. Her proposal failed, but the vote revealed how closely this issue ties into bigger local conversations — like the city’s camping ban and the shortage of affordable homes.
STRisker Government Office Dashboard
Trying to keep up with the main players in the STR game? Know your councilmembers, commissioners, committee chairs, and key staff that are part of the process.
At-large Councilor Alisa Costa underscored the stakes with data from a UMass Donahue Institute study showing that nearly a quarter of Pittsfield home sales since 2004 have gone to investors. “Housing is such a critical issue right now,” she said. “We have a huge shortage in Berkshire County and across the region.”
Beyond the cap, the ordinance lays down a first-ever definition of short-term rentals — any residential rental of 30 days or less — and requires all operators to register with the city. This gives officials clearer authority to handle complaints and potential zoning violations.
Still, enforcement is a question mark. Rayner admitted the system will rely on “an amount of good faith” since tracking every listing across platforms like Airbnb would be costly. Multiple city departments — building, police, fire, and health — will share enforcement duties, funneling violations to the licensing board.
The new rules passed 10–1, with Ward 3 Councilor Matthew Wrinn in opposition. For Pittsfield, the ordinance marks a major step toward reining in short-term rentals while balancing the rights of property owners with the need for affordable housing. Whether the 150-day cap is enough to shift the market remains to be seen, but the city now has a framework to start shaping the STR landscape.
Stay Updated with STRisker
STRisker offers tools and features to keep you updated with the Short-Term Rental movement across the U.S.
👍 We’d love your feedback.
We're always looking for ways to improve Bulletins.
Was this one useful to you? Other topics you'd like to see get covered?
✉️ Just reply directly to this email. We read and respond to every message!
-Will McClure
🙋 P.S.
Know someone else who should be reading this Bulletin? Feel free to forward this along. We want to make sure operators and stakeholders are aware of regulatory changes in their area.