Greater Boston Home Price Growth Slows Through May

The first five months of 2026 brought little relief for single-family buyers across the Boston area, though condominium prices declined from a year earlier.

Greater Boston homebuyers encountered a market with fewer sales but little movement in single-family prices during the first five months of 2026.

The data through May point to a market that has become less active without becoming less expensive, according to The Warren Group. Homebuyers completed 158 fewer single-family purchases than during the first five months of 2025, while the median price increased by $10,000.

From January through May, 6,761 single-family homes were sold in Greater Boston, a 2 percent decline from the same period last year. The median sale price rose 1 percent, to $795,000 from $785,000.

The Warren Group, a publisher of real estate and mortgage data, analytics, and news, defines Greater Boston as the 139 Massachusetts communities located within the Interstate 495 corridor.

Despite steady house prices, the rate of price growth has slowed. During all of 2025, the Greater Boston median single-family price rose 5 percent, to $799,000, while sales increased almost 3 percent, to 21,009. By comparison, the first five months of 2026 saw a 1 percent price increase and a 2 percent decline in sales.

The annual and year-to-date figures cover different periods and are affected by seasonal patterns; however, together they show that the rapid price appreciation recorded last year has moderated, even though prices have not broadly fallen.

Early Sales Deficit Narrowed During the Spring

The Greater Boston market began 2026 slowly, recording 1,058 single-family sales in January, 14 percent fewer than a year earlier. Through February, cumulative sales were down 11 percent. The Warren Group attributed some of the early weakness to winter weather, the timing of holiday home searches, and limited inventory.

Activity improved as the traditional spring market began. By the end of March, the cumulative sales decline had narrowed to nearly 5 percent. It was 2 percent through April and 2 percent through May.

Price growth remained modest during that recovery. The Greater Boston single-family median price rose less than 1 percent through February, 1 percent through March, 2 percent through April, and 1 percent through May.

May alone was nearly flat. The median single-family price was $833,750, down less than percent from May 2025, while the number of sales fell 2 percent to 1,992. The monthly result suggests that spring demand did not produce another large year-over-year price increase, but one month does not establish a lasting trend.

Condo Prices Offer Some Relative Relief

Greater Boston’s condominium market provided a different picture.

Through May, 5,268 condos were sold, less than 1 percent fewer than during the same period of 2025. The year-to-date median price was $615,000, a 2 percent decline from $630,000. That median was $180,000 below the corresponding single-family median.

The cumulative condo sales gap also narrowed as the spring progressed. Sales were down almost 7 percent through February, 5 percent through March, and 2 percent through April, before declining less than 1 percent through May.

Condo prices remained below year-earlier levels, but the cumulative decline moderated in May. The year-to-date median had been down 5 percent through April before narrowing to 2 percent through May.

May itself was considerably stronger. Greater Boston condo sales rose 4 percent from a year earlier, while the monthly median price increased 5 percent, to $665,000. The contrast between the strong May result and the lower year-to-date median shows why buyers should avoid drawing conclusions from a single month.

During all of 2025, Greater Boston condo sales rose 3 percent, to 13,938, while the annual median price was nearly unchanged at $618,986. The weaker sales and prices recorded during the first five months of 2026 represent a softer start than last year’s modest full-year performance.

Massachusetts Followed a Similar Pattern

Statewide results also showed fewer transactions and relatively stable prices.

Massachusetts recorded 14,039 single-family sales from January through May, down 2 percent from the same period in 2025. The median price increased 1 percent, to $625,000. The statewide median, which includes more affordable Western Massachusetts, was $170,000 below the Greater Boston median price.

In 2025, Massachusetts single-family sales rose nearly 3 percent, to 43,240, and the median price climbed 4 percent, to $638,000. As in Greater Boston, the first five months of 2026 brought slower price growth and fewer sales than a year earlier.

The statewide condo market was weaker than Greater Boston’s in terms of sales. Massachusetts recorded 7,050 condo transactions through May, down 4 percent. The median price fell 1 percent, to $535,000. During all of 2025, condo sales increased almost 4 percent, and the annual median price remained essentially unchanged at $537,000.

For Greater Boston homebuyers, the five-month results do not indicate a widespread fall in single-family prices. They instead describe a market with slightly fewer purchases and a welcome slower pace of appreciation than in 2025.

Condominiums have offered more price relief at the regional median, but their strong May performance suggests that conditions can shift quickly. The next two to three months may provide more insight.

Because these figures combine sales from 139 cities and towns and many types of properties, individual municipalities and listings may differ substantially from the regional trend.

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