Published October 13, 2026 in Market Update

Chelmsford stayed tight even with 7.40% mortgage rates

By Patrick & Alana Scanlon

Real estate, Chelmsford

The number that matters most right now: 84 pending sales in Chelmsford, up 10.5% from a year ago. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted those for the three months ending August 31, 2026. Freddie Mac put the 30-year fixed rate at 7.40% on October 8, 2026, the highest in 35 months according to Realtor.com. Buyers kept moving anyway.

Supply did not open up to give them more to choose from. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 31 homes for sale and just 1.1 months of supply, unchanged from a year before. That is a very thin cushion. When a well-priced home comes on, it does not sit.

Prices held up, but not every home flew off the shelf

The Real Estate Data Aggregator put the median sale price in ZIP 01824 at $722,000 for the three months ending August 31, 2026. That is up 1.7% from the same period in 2025. Nationally, the Federal Housing Finance Agency reported U.S. house prices rose 2.6% from July 2025 to July 2026. Chelmsford's gain was smaller, but prices did not fall.

Homes still sold above list, on average. The Real Estate Data Aggregator put the average sale-to-list ratio at 102.4%. That is down 0.9 points from a year ago, a small slip. And 67.8% of homes sold above list price, down 4 points from the year before. So slightly fewer homes sparked a bidding war, but most still did.

Speed: most homes moved fast, but not quite as fast

The median home in ZIP 01824 went under contract in 21 days, according to the Real Estate Data Aggregator. That is 3 days longer than the same period in 2025. Still, 67.9% of homes went under contract within two weeks of listing, down just 1.8 points from a year ago. Quick is still the norm here. Slow is the exception.

What the rate environment looks like right now

Freddie Mac averaged the 30-year fixed rate at 7.40% as of October 8, 2026. The 15-year fixed averaged 6.73%, also per Freddie Mac. Realtor.com reported the 10-year Treasury yield averaged 5.28% that same week, the highest since 2002. Higher rates raise monthly payments. That is a real cost. It did not stop Chelmsford buyers in the three months ending August 31, 2026, but it is worth knowing as you plan.

Nationally, Realtor.com reported that 20.8% of listings took a price cut in September, the highest share since October 2022. That is not what the Real Estate Data Aggregator showed in Chelmsford, where homes still averaged 102.4% of list. The national picture and the local one are telling different stories right now.

One last thing. These numbers cover all of ZIP 01824. One street, one neighborhood or one style of home can read very differently from the ZIP as a whole. North Chelmsford, for example, has its own village feel and its own price patterns. If you want to know what the data says about your specific street, text us your address.