Short-term rentals in Portland, Maine

Portland is Maine's food and culture capital: a compact port city of brick sidewalks, a working waterfront and a restaurant scene that draws visitors from across the Northeast. Summer is the peak, with ferries to the Casco Bay islands and day trips to lighthouses, autumn holds up well, and winter is slower without going silent. Most rentals are apartments and condos on the peninsula, in Munjoy Hill, the West End and around the Old Port, with houses more common off-peninsula and on Peaks Island.

A capped system

Portland is one of the few New England cities with a hard limit on short-term rentals not occupied by their owner. For 2026, the mainland cap for non-owner-occupied units equals 1.5% of the long-term rentals registered on September 1 of the previous year, recalculated every year, and Peaks Island has a separate yearly cap of 40 year-round non-owner-occupied units. No new tenant-occupied short-term rentals are allowed from 2026; existing ones survive only if renewed by December 31. Owner-occupied units on the mainland are not capped, but the owner must prove the unit is a primary residence, for example with a homestead exemption.

Registration opens on November 1 and renewal is due by December 31 each year; a license that lapses goes back into the pool. The registration number must appear on every listing, and a fire safety inspection is part of the process. In buildings with one or two units, only one short-term rental is allowed, a detail that matters to duplex buyers.

Taxes

Maine's 9% tax on short-term lodging applies. Platforms collect it on their bookings; direct bookings require your own registration with Maine Revenue Services.

Our advice

Do not buy a peninsula condo expecting a non-owner-occupied license to follow: the cap is tight, and new slots depend on others failing to renew. If you live in the city, hosting in your own home or building is the realistic route. If you are an investor, look at furnished stays of 30 days or more, at the islands' own categories, or at markets elsewhere in Maine, and check how Portland's rent stabilization rules apply to the building. We study every request and tell you honestly whether and how we can help.