2025 Mission Hill Apartment Rental Market Report

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Mission Hill’s apartment rental market has outpaced that of Boston as a whole throughout all of 2025.  The average rent price for Mission Hill apartments has risen +5.98% over the past 12 months compared to just +2.32% in the city of Boston, while real-time availability rate (RTAR) is up just +7.12% in Mission Hill compared the +35.45% increase in RTAR recorded in Boston.  Given its close proximity to downtown landmarks and its relative affordability, it’s not surprising that more and more renters are gravitating towards Mission Hill.  Here are the trends affecting Mission Hill’s apartment rental market.

Mission Hill Apartment Supply Remains Stable

The current real-time availability rate for apartments in Mission Hill is 6.32%.  That figure is up +7.12% compared to a year ago and down +13.26% over two years.  Mission Hill’s RTAR bottomed out at 1.38% in September of last year, significantly higher than its seasonal low point in 2023 (0.43%) and 2022 (0.14%).  Mission Hill’s seasonal peak in RTAR for 2024 was 9.4% in early February, slightly higher than its peak in 2023 (8.82%) but still well below the pre-pandemic peaks in availability we were seeing, which were in the 12-15% range.  Mission Hill appears to be slowly returning to those pre-pandemic trends over the past 2 years, although tight inventory has prompted many to re-sign their leases rather than risk not being able to find a new apartment.

Mission Hill’s real-time vacancy rate (RTVR) is currently 0.47%, down -14.55% year-over-year and +46.88% over the previous 2 years.  In September of this year, Mission Hill’s RTVR did crest above the 1% mark for the first time since September 2021, ending a 3 year period where Mission Hill vacancies stayed below 0.75%.  To say inventory has been scarce here would be an understatement.  The low levels of inventory have been unprecedented and a sign that demand for housing in Mission Hill is stronger than ever.  Rezoning parts of mission hill to add height and density would be a wise choice for elected officials.  Being able to combine lots and add more units could help bring affordability to more people.

Politicians in Boston would be appreciated for the fact that they stopped peddling untenably high affordability requirements in deals and just focused on pure market production.  A rising supply lifts all people and drops pricing.  Business leaders and developers need to lead the way in explaining to elected officials how development actually works.  Training and education sessions should be developed for elected officials so they can understand the costs and risks associated with real estate development rather than trying to create pandering sound bites that do nothing to increase supply.

According to our most recent Mission Hill apartment data, the median days on market for an apartment in Mission Hill is 16 days.  That figure is down 2 days from a year ago, and another sign that demand for Mission Hill is strong.  As basic economics will tell you, when demand is high and supply is low, prices will trend upwards.  It would make sense that we started teaching supply and demand fundamentals back into our various school systems so that our elected officials could gain a better grasp on how to create more affordable housing opportunities.  It is going to require fresh approaches on development to dramatically increase supply rather than having such low real time availability and vacancy rates that we have witnessed over the last several years.  This is why the average rent price in Mission Hill is outpacing many other neighborhoods in Boston—we need to remove barriers to development.

Average Rent Prices in Mission Hill

The current average rent price in Mission Hill is $4,025.  That figure is up +5.98% year over year and +12.68% over a 2-year span.  Mission Hill is now the 10th most expensive neighborhood to rent an apartment in Boston, where the overall city average rent price is $3,267.  Renters looking for smaller apartment units (studio and 1 bedroom) in Mission Hill will actually see a lower average rent price when compared to Boston.  Renters looking for larger units (3, 4, and 5 bedroom) will encounter a higher average rent price in Mission hill when compared to Boston.

Mission Hill Apartment Rental Market Forecast 2025

Mission Hill serves as a microcosm to Boston as a whole.  It is a small area where housing demand has exploded in recent decades, which presents unique challenges for developers and city officials.  Universities will continue to expand and increase enrollment so they can build their next state of the art facilities to attract the next generation of young talent.  This is the way the world works- universities are a business just like any other- minus the fact that they don’t pay taxes.  If we want the best future schools to compete against other countries we are going to have to accept we will continue to increase enrollment and that government has an obligation to help small local builders thrive through more people applying and thriving in Boston.

There is not an abundance of developable land available to increase housing stock, so landlords and city officials will have to find unique ways to unleash the free market and allow for property managers to accommodate the need for new housing.  WIth that comes the need for zoning reforms and owner incentives to invest in their properties.

That likely won’t happen right away, so for now, expect rental price growth and apartment scarcity to continue in this highly sought after rental market.  Look for Mission Hill’s average rent price growth to continue to outpace Boston over the next 12 months, likely in the 7-10% range.  Demand will likely be higher as the new administration takes over in January and people feel bullish about the economy.  We will continue to monitor these trends as they develop.