2026 Mission Hill Apartment Rental Market Report

Mission Hill remains one of Boston’s most competitive rental markets as we head into 2026. Driven by its proximity to Boston’s major educational institutions and employment hubs, demand for Mission Hill apartments remains consistently strong. While the market has loosened compared to the extreme supply constraints of the last 3 years, current conditions remain somewhat close to longer historical standards.

Compared with the market conditions covered in previous reports, today’s Mission Hill rental landscape reflects a shift toward greater balance and more options rather than a true slowdown. Available inventory has increased in 2026 while leasing velocity remains strong.  It is going to be interesting to see how the rental market in Mission Hill shakes out this year with local universities and colleges setting the edge through perhaps modified enrollment practices.  Last year they were caught flat footed in an international enrollment system that had run on autopilot and kept increasing the percentage of foreign students filling the ranks of nearby schools.  New federal immigration and security issues disrupted that feeder stream filling the schools with quick clock like precision.  It will be interesting to see how they handle their enrollment policies this year.

Mission Hill Rental Supply Figures

Mission Hill’s Real-Time Availability Rate (RTAR) currently sits at 9.02%.  That marks a notable year-over year increase of +48.94% and a 2-year change of +103.13%. So while more apartments are actively available on the market compared to recent leasing cycles, the rise in RTAR could be viewed as a normalization from unusually compressed supply levels of the last two years rather than a sign of excess inventory. Renters have more options than they did in 2024 or 2023.  Immigration policy and international students certainly play an economic and real estate related role in the Mission Hill and surrounding areas.

The Real-Time Vacancy Rate (RTVR) in Mission Hill is currently 0.61%, up +58.82% year-over-year and +28.57% compared to two years ago. Although vacancy has increased by a larger margin this year, it remains extremely low in absolute terms. Even at today’s levels, Mission Hill is far from a soft market. Instead, the data suggests a modest easing from the historically tight market conditions following the pandemic recovery, reinforcing the idea that the neighborhood is stabilizing rather than weakening.  We will certainly have a much more comprehensive prediction by mid-April based on how universities are deploying their housing and enrollment strategies.

Over the past 180 days, the median number of days an apartment spent on the market in Mission Hill was 16 days. That figure has remained unchanged compared to mid-January 2025, illustrating that demand has held steady in Mission Hill over the past 12 months. Despite higher availability, apartments are still leasing quickly, underscoring sustained demand and strong renter engagement. Well-priced units continue to attract immediate interest, often leasing within days of hitting the market.  The market should shift into full swing by February as numerous students like to fine tune their housing decisions before either mid-terms but definitely before finals.

Mission Hill Average Rent Prices

According to our real-time Mission Hill rental data, overall average rent price is $4,257, up +5.61% compared to a year ago and +12.79% over a two year span.  This underscores persistent price growth in Mission Hill even as availability shifts. While rent price growth remained relatively flat for Boston apartments (+1.87 year-over-year), strong rental demand has pushed apartment prices up by a higher margin in Mission Hill.  It will be interesting to see if these prices hold as the season continues.

Breaking down Mission Hill rents by unit size reveals an interesting trend. Prices for smaller units remain 4-8% below Boston city-wide averages while larger units in Mission Hill are 10-20% higher.  This price discrepancy is due in large part to high demand for larger off-campus housing units in Mission Hill, where students often pool resources to split rent and utilities to attain better cost containment.

2026 Mission Hill Rental Market Predictions

Looking ahead to 2026, Mission Hill’s rental market is expected to remain highly competitive, though with slightly more breathing room than renters experienced in 2024 and 2025. Increased availability should give renters more choice, but persistently low vacancy and fast leasing timelines will continue to favor landlords, particularly for well-maintained and appropriately priced units.  Numerous landlords are now paying the brokers commission so that is making it more affordable for some tenants if they find the right deal.  Rent growth is likely to fall in the 2-3% range, though pricing strategy will matter more, especially for older or less updated inventory.

Uncertainty surrounding recent housing regulations and rent control could play a part in reshaping landlord behavior and market dynamics in Mission Hill. In an area with a lot of private landlords, placing a cap on rent increases will cause some Mission Hill property owners to sell, further constraining an already tight supply.  We are also hearing a lot of rumblings of property owners considering taking their existing multi-family properties and turning them into condos and selling them to avoid rent control.  Should something as horrible as rent control actually pass, those that do not sell will have less income to reinvest in their properties, causing housing quality to deteriorate over time.

The city must find ways to deregulate zoning across all areas of Boston to allow property owners to organically increase housing supply.  This is especially important in small micro-markets like Mission Hill where developable land is limited.  We will continue to monitor these trends as they develop here on Boston Pads.