Published October 18, 2026 in Market Update

One part of Boston - North is moving fast even with more choices

By Patrick & Alana Scanlon

Real estate, Boston - North

These numbers cover the three months ending August 31, 2026. Realtor.com reported that days on market in Boston increased by 6 year over year. More time, more choices, more room to breathe. That is the broad picture. But one ZIP code inside Boston - North is not reading that way at all.

ZIP 02129 is the outlier

The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 1.4 months of supply in ZIP 02129 for the three months ending August 31, 2026. That is tight. Really tight. Most of the other ZIPs in Boston - North sit between 3 and 6 months. One, ZIP 02111, hit 6.3 months.

Low supply alone does not tell the whole story. The speed number confirms it. The Real Estate Data Aggregator found that 45.7% of homes in ZIP 02129 went under contract within two weeks of listing. That is the highest two-week rate of any ZIP in Boston - North with enough sales to read clearly.

Sellers there are also getting paid. The Real Estate Data Aggregator put the average sale-to-list ratio in ZIP 02129 at 100.6% for the same period. Homes sold for more than asking, on average. That does not happen everywhere right now.

How ZIP 02129 compares with the rest

Here is a side-by-side look at months of supply and the two-week contract rate across several ZIPs. The spread is wide.

What changed in ZIP 02129

Inventory did grow there. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 42 homes for sale, up 35.5% from the same three months in 2025. New listings rose 7% too, to 76. More choices for buyers, yes. But demand kept pace. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 95 homes sold, up 9.2% year over year. The median sale price came in at $1,165,000, up 11% from a year before.

One honest note: the two-week contract rate in ZIP 02129 was down 9.9 points from a year ago, per the Real Estate Data Aggregator. Speed is still real there. It is just a little less extreme than it was in 2025.

The wider picture is slower

Realtor.com also reported that inventory in the Northeast region rose 11.6% year over year, and the median list price in the Northeast fell 3.8% over the same stretch. More supply and softer asking prices are showing up across the region, not just in Boston.

ZIP 02111 shows what slower looks like up close. The Real Estate Data Aggregator put its months of supply at 6.3, up 1.3 months from last year. Median days on market there was 57. No homes sold above list price at all during the period. New listings jumped 40%. That is a very different conversation from ZIP 02129.

What this means for you

For sellers in ZIP 02129, speed is still possible. The Real Estate Data Aggregator shows 19 median days on market and homes selling above asking. Pricing it right still matters. The sale-to-list ratio slipped 1.4 points from last year. The market rewards accuracy, not wishful thinking.

For buyers in ZIP 02129, 45.7% of homes went under contract in two weeks. That means preparation matters more than patience there. Other ZIPs give you more time. ZIP 02114 had a median of 53 days on market. ZIP 02111 was at 57. Those are real differences worth knowing before you decide where to focus.

For context on borrowing costs: Fannie Mae, as reported by CNBC on October 14, 2026, forecast an average 30-year fixed mortgage rate of 7.5% through 2027. That backdrop shapes what buyers can afford and how long homes sit, across every ZIP here.