Gloucester, Massachusetts
Property management in Gloucester, MA
Copper Bottom is taking on condominium boards and rental owners in Gloucester. Gloucester is a working seaport with a dense downtown of multi-family houses, condominiums along the harbor and in East Gloucester, and small commercial and mixed-use buildings along Main Street and the waterfront. Salt air and storms make capital planning the first job of any Gloucester association.
- Licensed Massachusetts broker
- From 6% of rent or $50 per door
- $500 repair approval limit
- Se habla español
Who we work with in Gloucester
Rental owners and condo boards
Condo association management
Associations of six to one hundred fifty units: budgets, dues, reserves, 6(d) certificates and clear monthly financials. From $50 per door.
Condo association management →For rental ownersRental property management
Buildings of three units and up: leasing, rent, repairs, Massachusetts compliance and a statement every month. From 6% of rent.
Rental property management →What managing property in Gloucester actually involves
Downtown Gloucester and the Fort are two to six unit wood-frame houses, many owned by investors; East Gloucester, Rocky Neck and the harbor have condominium conversions and purpose-built waterfront buildings; Magnolia, Lanesville and Annisquam are mostly single-family and seasonal. Rental demand is year-round downtown and seasonal everywhere else.
City departments are at Gloucester City Hall on Dale Avenue. The Gloucester commuter rail station and Route 128 connect the city to the rest of the North Shore. Waterfront work usually needs Conservation Commission review, and parts of downtown are in historic districts.
What owners in Gloucester deal with
Gloucester has more than 62 miles of shoreline, and the state's summary of the city's climate vulnerability assessment notes that some vulnerable areas lie outside the existing FEMA flood zones. The floodplain ordinance the City Council approved, effective June 1, 2023, created a Floodplain Overlay District that adds a Future Flood Risk District, mapped to 2.4 feet of sea level rise, to the federal flood zones. Short-term rentals fall under an ordinance the council approved on August 27, 2024, effective January 1, 2025. A unit the owner does not live in can be rented short-term up to 120 days a year, and those units are capped at 500 citywide. Condo boards revising rental rules should read the ordinance alongside their own documents. Commuter rail stops at Gloucester station on Railroad Avenue and at West Gloucester.
Copper Bottom in Gloucester
Gloucester is about forty minutes from our Marblehead office. We manage property in Beverly today, the next city along Route 128.
Switching managers, or done doing it yourself?
Most Gloucester owners and boards call us for one of two reasons: their current manager has gone quiet, or running the building themselves stopped being worth the evenings. We take over without a gap, from 6% of rent or $50 per door. How switching works · What a manager takes off your plate · Free rental analysis
Gloucester questions
Do you manage waterfront condo associations in Gloucester?
Yes, associations of six units and up. We start with the building's exposure to weather and plan the reserve around it.
Do you manage year-round rentals in Gloucester?
Yes, buildings of three units and up. We do not manage seasonal or short-term rentals.
What are Gloucester's short-term rental limits?
Under the ordinance effective January 1, 2025, an owner can register one short-term rental at a time. Annual limits are 365 days if the owner lives there full time, 180 days part time and 120 days if not owner-occupied, with permit fees of $100, $150 and $300.
What is Gloucester's Future Flood Risk District?
It is part of the Floodplain Overlay District in the city's floodplain ordinance, effective June 1, 2023. It covers areas projected to flood with 2.4 feet of sea level rise, using the Massachusetts Coast Flood Risk Model map, in addition to the FEMA flood zones.
Local rules change. Information about Gloucester ordinances and offices was checked in October 2026 and is general information, not legal advice. Confirm current requirements with the city or town before relying on them.
Nearby towns we serve
Essex
A small shipbuilding town of antique shops, clam shacks and a few condo buildings.
Essex →Beverly
Downtown condos near the train and Rantoul Street multi-families.
Beverly →Hamilton
Horse country with a few condo communities and a small downtown on Route 1A.
Hamilton →Ipswich
First Period houses, downtown condo conversions and year-round rentals near the train.
Ipswich →Salem
Downtown condo trusts, Point and North Salem multi-families, and the busiest October in New England.
Salem →Own property in Gloucester? Let's talk.
Send the address and unit count, or call. A licensed broker answers, and the proposal lists every fee.