Weekly real estate insights for Greater Boston suburban buyers
Data-driven market analysis, strategic buyer intelligence, and actionable insights for the $800K-$1.5M entry-luxury commuter-home segment.
Hanover, Lynnfield, Tewksbury, and Seekonk all gave Trump majorities—flipping from Biden with 6-8 point swings. This comprehensive analysis ranks Boston metro towns by Republican voting strength, reveals the South Shore's competitive zone, and explains what the 2024 rightward shift means for homebuyers.
Only four Boston metro towns voted for Trump in 2024: Hanover (51%), Lynnfield (51%), Tewksbury (50%), and Seekonk (50%)—all flipping from Biden. Massachusetts shifted 8 points rightward, one of the nation's largest swings, yet remained solidly blue. This analysis ranks towns by Republican voting strength, documents the South Shore competitive zone (MA-8 district averaged 29-35% Trump), and shows how Boston gained 5.4 points while Cambridge held steady. Understanding voting patterns reveals community values, school priorities, and housing policies that affect daily life.
Your assessment isn't what Zillow says your home is worth. Here's how Massachusetts assessors actually determine value, why your assessment might be wrong, and exactly how to appeal—with deadlines, evidence requirements, and success strategies.
Your property tax bill just arrived and the assessment jumped 15%. Is it wrong? Maybe—but not for the reasons you think. Massachusetts assessors use a specific methodology that differs from Zillow, appraisals, and even recent sale prices. Understanding how assessments actually work is the first step to knowing whether you have a valid appeal.
The traditional income multiple rules are incomplete. In today's housing market, the more important question is no longer 'What multiple can I afford?' but rather 'What trajectory am I on, and how much risk can my household absorb?'
For decades, homebuyers have been taught to anchor their purchase decisions to simple rules of thumb: buy a home that costs two, three, or at most four times your annual income. But while these multiples are not wrong, they are incomplete. In today's housing market—defined by volatile interest rates, dual-income households, uneven career paths, and rising non-housing costs—the more important question is no longer 'What multiple can I afford?' but rather 'What trajectory am I on, and how much risk can my household absorb?'
The rent vs buy decision isn't just about money—it's about your life. This comprehensive framework helps you evaluate financial readiness, time horizon, lifestyle factors, career stability, and market timing to make the right choice.
Deciding whether to rent or buy in Greater Boston requires more than a simple financial calculation. It requires understanding your financial readiness, time horizon, lifestyle priorities, career stability, family planning timeline, and market conditions. This step-by-step framework walks you through each factor, helps you assess your situation, and provides a decision framework that considers both financial and lifestyle factors. Use this guide to make an informed rent vs buy decision that aligns with your goals.
Slumlords profit from unsafe, substandard housing while violating tenant rights. Learn the warning signs—from code violations to eviction patterns—and how to protect yourself before you sign a lease.
Slumlords are landlords who profit from unsafe, substandard housing while systematically violating tenant rights. They ignore maintenance requests, violate housing codes, and exploit tenants who don't know their rights. This guide teaches you how to identify slumlords before you sign a lease, including physical property red flags, financial warning signs, behavioral patterns, and how to check property ownership and code violation history. Protect yourself from slumlords with this comprehensive warning system.
Before you sign a lease, investigate your landlord. This guide shows you how to check public records, verify property management companies, spot red flags, and protect yourself from bad landlords.
Finding the right rental property in Greater Boston is only half the battle—you also need the right landlord. A good landlord responds to maintenance requests, respects your privacy, and follows the law. A bad landlord can make your life miserable. This comprehensive guide teaches you how to research landlords, verify property management companies, check for lawsuits and code violations, ask the right questions, and identify red flags before you sign a lease.
A clean, strategic synthesis of the entire five-town MBTA Communities Family ROI analysis series—the distilled insights you can reuse for client memos, posts, and internal decision frameworks.
After analyzing Lexington, Winchester, Needham, Dover, Medfield, and Wellesley, one truth holds: The value of a single-family home inside an MBTA multifamily overlay is not about density. It's about how density changes walkability, nuisances, and long-term optionality. This master summary provides the core framework, town-by-town strategic summaries, cross-town patterns, and actionable takeaways for buyers and owners.
Towns that shifted Republican in 2024 offer 4BR homes on half-acre lots for $775K. Towns that voted 85% Democrat? $1.025M gets you a 2BR condo. The political geography of Greater Boston housing affordability—backed by voting data, property records, and uncomfortable math.
Hanover (R+3, shifted right) offers 4BR homes on 0.5 acre for $775K. Brookline (D+73, stable blue) offers 2BR condos for $1.025M. Both have 8.0/10 schools. The $250K gap—and 91% price-per-sqft premium—isn't about politics directly. It's about location, transit access, zoning, and demographic sorting. But the correlation is undeniable: Towns shifting rightward are where middle-class families can still afford space. This analysis examines voting patterns, property data, and housing policy across Greater Boston to reveal the uncomfortable relationship between political geography and housing affordability.
What 176 transactions reveal about pricing, new construction premiums, townhouse vs. single-family gaps, and where value opportunities actually exist in Boston's elite lakeside suburb.
Winchester sold 176 properties (3bd/2ba+) in 2025 for $313M+ in volume. Median price: $1.78M. New construction commanded 60% premiums. Townhouses offered the only sub-$1M entry. And street-level pricing varied by $400K for comparable homes. This comprehensive breakdown analyzes every sale to show you what actually sold, where the value opportunities hide, and what you need to know before competing in one of Greater Boston's most prestigious markets.
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