HPI (2025)FHFA
282
Metro Series · Northeast · Rank #11
Home Appreciation & Price History in Boston
Boston's FHFA house price index changed +4.0% from 2024 to 2025. The latest annual reading is at its highest annual reading in this series.
Annual data through 2025 · Editorial review 20 September 2026 · Amos Ductan
FHFA all-transactions House Price Index for the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metropolitan statistical area — annual data, 1975 through 2025, rebased to 100 in the year 2000.
YoY changeFHFA
+4.0%
5-yr changeFHFA
+49%
Since 2000FHFA
+182%
Are home prices falling in Boston?
Boston's FHFA house price index changed +4.0% from 2024 to 2025. The latest annual reading is at its highest annual reading in this series. These are annual observations through 2025, not a reading of this month's listings or sale prices. Annual averages can hide changes within a year.
Boston home appreciation over 1, 5 and 10 years
| Period | Metro total | Metro per year | MA total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year (2024–2025) | +4.0% | +4.0% | +3.7% |
| 5 years (2020–2025) | +49.4% | +8.4% | +49.2% |
| 10 years (2015–2025) | +89.3% | +6.6% | +87.1% |
Total appreciation measures the change between the two annual index values. Per-year appreciation is the compound annual growth rate, not a simple average of annual percentage changes. Figures are not adjusted for inflation and exclude rent, mortgage interest, taxes, insurance, maintenance and transaction costs. They are not an investor's net return.
Boston housing drawdown and recovery time
Boston's largest observed annual peak-to-trough decline was 17.2%, from 2006 to 2012. The index first regained that peak in 2017, 11 years after the peak. This measures nominal index recovery, not an investor's break-even date after costs or inflation.
Drawdown is the largest decline from a preceding annual peak in the available 1975–2025 series. Annual observations can understate within-year losses. Longer series include more cycles, so compare coverage periods as well as percentages.
Boston appreciation by holding period
How much did the entry year matter? This table compares every complete five- and ten-year interval in the available annual series, including periods that ended below their starting value.
| Holding period | Lowest change | Highest change | Negative periods |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 years | -16.5% 2006–2011 | +126.9% 1982–1987 | 9 of 46 |
| 10 years | -6.1% 2005–2015 | +314.2% 1977–1987 | 3 of 41 |
Periods overlap: adjacent rows in the underlying calculation share most of their years. Counts describe this history, not independent trials or the probability of a future loss. These are price changes before inflation, financing, ownership costs or rental income.
What is the median home price in Boston?
This series does not report a dollar median. An index of 282.44 is an index reading, not a $282 home price. The index tracks changes in single-family property values; a median sale price depends on which homes sold. Use recent local closed-sale comparables for a purchase or sale decision. See average versus median home prices.
How can investors compare Boston with other markets?
Use the 100-metro appreciation comparison to compare identical holding periods, then check this market's drawdown and recovery history. Appreciation is one component of a property investment: this dataset does not measure rental yield, vacancy, cap rates or cash-on-cash returns. A metro-wide series covers the broader commuting area, not an individual neighborhood or home. Past appreciation does not predict the next cycle. For the national context, see housing affordability and mortgage rate history.
Boston housing market cycles
The Boston metropolitan area has FHFA House Price Index data running from 1975 through 2025. The index, rebased to 100 in the year 2000, stood at 15.7 in 1975 and 282.4 in 2025. Cumulative nominal appreciation since 2000: +182.4%.
Within the 2000–2013 crisis window, the Boston HPI declined by 17.2% peak-to-trough — from 159.5 in 2006 to 132.0 in 2012.
The pandemic-era surge brought the Boston HPI from 183.6 in 2019 to 282.4 in 2025 — a cumulative +53.8% move in 6 years.
Located in the Northeast region of the United States, Boston is one of the 100 largest U.S. metropolitan statistical areas by population. Long-run housing appreciation in Boston reflects a combination of regional employment trends, in-migration patterns, and local supply constraints. The full year-by-year FHFA HPI for Boston is in the data table below.
To compare Boston to the national U.S. housing market, see the national median price history dashboard. Other metros in the Northeast region: see the full metro index. For state-level data, see the state index.
Annual data — Boston
Download Boston annual home price index data (CSV)
FHFA House Price Index, 2000=100. Annual data; not seasonally adjusted. Source: U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency.
| Year | HPI (2000=100) | YoY change |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 282.44 | +3.97% |
| 2024 | 271.66 | +6.24% |
| 2023 | 255.71 | +7.88% |
| 2022 | 237.04 | +13.33% |
| 2021 | 209.15 | +10.63% |
| 2020 | 189.05 | +2.95% |
| 2019 | 183.64 | +4.31% |
| 2018 | 176.06 | +5.46% |
| 2017 | 166.94 | +6.17% |
| 2016 | 157.24 | +5.39% |
| 2015 | 149.20 | +3.99% |
| 2014 | 143.48 | +6.10% |
| 2013 | 135.23 | +2.42% |
| 2012 | 132.04 | -0.88% |
| 2011 | 133.21 | -2.01% |
| 2010 | 135.94 | -2.02% |
| 2009 | 138.74 | -5.90% |
| 2008 | 147.44 | -4.38% |
| 2007 | 154.20 | -3.33% |
| 2006 | 159.51 | +0.36% |
| 2005 | 158.94 | +9.31% |
| 2004 | 145.40 | +9.77% |
| 2003 | 132.46 | +7.14% |
| 2002 | 123.63 | +10.69% |
| 2001 | 111.69 | +11.69% |
| 2000 | 100.00 | +17.86% |
| 1999 | 84.85 | +9.27% |
| 1998 | 77.65 | +6.97% |
| 1997 | 72.59 | +5.05% |
| 1996 | 69.10 | +3.80% |
| 1995 | 66.57 | +2.67% |
| 1994 | 64.84 | +0.75% |
| 1993 | 64.36 | -0.34% |
| 1992 | 64.58 | -1.34% |
| 1991 | 65.46 | -6.46% |
| 1990 | 69.98 | -4.59% |
| 1989 | 73.35 | -0.04% |
| 1988 | 73.38 | +5.33% |
| 1987 | 69.67 | +11.31% |
| 1986 | 62.59 | +19.42% |
| 1985 | 52.41 | +24.08% |
| 1984 | 42.24 | +27.11% |
| 1983 | 33.23 | +8.24% |
| 1982 | 30.70 | +3.47% |
| 1981 | 29.67 | +17.27% |
| 1980 | 25.30 | +12.05% |
| 1979 | 22.58 | +19.66% |
| 1978 | 18.87 | +12.19% |
| 1977 | 16.82 | +5.99% |
| 1976 | 15.87 | +0.89% |
| 1975 | 15.73 | — |
Nearby metros in MA
Other top-100 U.S. metros in MA, sorted by population rank. Same-state metros share state-level economic policy, school-funding structure, and FHFA state-aggregate behavior — but local housing cycles often diverge sharply.
Sources and methodology
The FHFA House Price Index is a weighted, repeat-sales index that measures average price changes in repeat sales or refinancings on the same single-family properties. The all-transactions index incorporates both purchase mortgages and refinance appraisals; the index is rebased to 100 in the year 2000. Coverage begins in 1975 for Boston. Source: FHFA HPI datasets; FHFA methodology FAQ. Data shown here end in 2025; the editorial review date does not indicate a new data release.