Boston Housing Market: Home Prices & Rent
Boston home values since 2000
Last few years
Rent in Boston
Owning vs renting, monthly
Buying the typical Boston home with 20% down at this week's 7.32% 30-year rate costs about $4,895/month (principal, interest plus ~1.5% a year for tax and insurance) vs $2,987/month typical rent.
Rate: Freddie Mac, week of Oct 22, 2026. Estimate for comparison only.
What changed this month
- Typical rent in Boston just fell below $3,000 a month
Boston vs Massachusetts vs the U.S.
| Typical home | 12-month change | Typical rent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| This metro | $726k | +2.1% | $2,987/mo |
| Massachusetts | $655k | +2.3% | - |
| United States | $366k | +1.2% | $1,932/mo |
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Common questions
Are home prices falling in Boston?
No - the typical Boston-area home value is up 2.1% over the past 12 months, at $726k (September 2026).
Is the Boston housing market crashing?
Home values are close to their 2020s high and up 2.1% over the past year - a rising market, not a sudden collapse. Whether that continues isn't knowable from the data - this page updates every month when new figures come out.
How much is rent in Boston?
Typical rent in the Boston metro is $2,987 a month (September 2026), +2.3% over 12 months.
How much income do you need to buy a home in Boston?
About $196k a year to afford the typical home with 20% down, spending no more than 30% of income on housing (September 2026).
Nearby and similar metros
Worcester, MA · Springfield, MA · New York City, NY · Seattle, WA · Bridgeport, CT · Honolulu, HI
Sources: Data Provided by Zillow Group (Zillow Home Value Index and Zillow Observed Rent Index, September 2026; income needed and listing data). 30-year mortgage rate: Freddie Mac PMMS. Figures are for the Boston, MA metro area. How we calculate.