Medford’s apartment rental market has remained relatively stable over the past 12 months compared to most other Boston neighborhoods. Apartment supply and availability have risen by 30-40% in most other markets year-over-year, however Medford’s apartment availability has remained closely tied to previous years’ levels. As a result, apartment prices have remained flat in Medford throughout most of 2024. Here are the trends affecting the Medford apartment rental market as we approach the Tufts rental season.
Apartment Supply in Medford MA
The current real-time availability rate for Medford apartments is 3.36%. That figure is up +8.74% year-over-year and actually down -5.35% compared to September 2022. For comparison, Boston’s RTAR is up +43.10% year-over-year and up +140.58% over two years. This illustrates the stability of Medford’s apartment supply over the past two years compared to the volatility other neighborhoods have experienced.
The previous chart shows a key divergence in Medford’s apartment rental market. Whereas Boston has a very clear increase in availability during the spring combined with a supply trough in fall, Medford actually has two seasonal peaks in availability in both spring and fall. This is due to the Tufts off-campus housing market, where apartments typically become available during the fall as a result of their somewhat unique leasing cycle.
A closer look at apartment availability by micro-neighborhood in Medford illustrates this trend well. Apartment availability outside of the Tufts markets are actually very low at the moment, whereas the Tufts neighborhood in Medford exhibits a 5.38% RTAR. The same trend can be seen in Somerville’s apartment rental market.
| Neigborhood | RTAR |
|---|---|
| Medford | 3.21% |
| Magoun Square | 0.00% |
| Medford Square | 1.16% |
| Wellington | 0.70% |
| Tufts | 5.38% |
The current real-time vacancy rate (RTVR) in Medford, MA is 0.81%, up +28.57% year-over-year and down -6.90% over a 2 year span. Again to put those numbers in context, Boston’s RTVR of 1.35% is up +62.65% year-over-year and +193.49% compared to September 2022. Medford’s vacancy rate has not surpassed the 1% level since September of 2022, following a huge spike in vacancies that occurred as a result of the global pandemic.
Median days on market for apartments is 49 days according to our real-time Medford apartment data. That figure is up +21 days compared to a year ago and significantly higher than Boston’s median days on market (24). This may indicate that demand has flattened in Medford over the past 12 months, and could hint at prices coming down in the future.
Medford Average Rent Prices
The current average rent price in Medford, MA is $3,528. That figure is up +1.53% compared to late September 2023 and up +11.89% over 2 years. Medford remains a more affordable option for Boston-area renters compared to city-wide averages. Medford rent prices are anywhere from -10-25% less than the city of Boston depending on the unit size, with larger units typically fetching higher prices in Medford.
A deeper dive in Medford’s average rent prices by micro-neighborhood shows that apartments in Magoun Square and Tufts are fetching the highest average rent prices, while Medford Square is the most affordable area to rent in Medford.
| Neigborhood | Average Rent Price |
|---|---|
| Medford | $3,548 |
| Magoun Square | $4,373 |
| Medford Square | $2,250 |
| Wellington | $3,624 |
| Tufts | $4,028 |
Medford Apartment Rental Market Forecast
Looking ahead towards the next 12 months in Medford’s rental market, it certainly feels like we’re headed for a real estate rental correction. Apartment prices are flat, supply is trending upward, and apartments are taking longer to rent in Medford this year. These are usually early signs of prices coming down, which we may see in 2025.
Look for rent prices in most of Medford to be flat or trend slightly downward throughout the rest of 2024. There will be a couple of spots where rents may rise a small amount as demand from Tufts housing will continue to drive that micro-market. If most of the Tufts inventory is not rented by the spring of next year, we very well may see prices turn downward across all of Medford in Q2 2025. We will be monitoring these trends closely as they develop here on bostonpads.com.
Demetrios Salpoglou
Published September 23, 2024
Demetrios has pulled together the largest apartment leasing team in the Greater Boston Area and is responsible for procuring more apartment rentals than anyone in New England – with over 130k people finding their housing through his services. Demetrios is an avid real estate developer, peak performance trainer, educator, guest lecturer and motivational speaker.
