Suppose real estate is the most significant investment a majority of people make in their lifetime. In that case, it’s best to understand the places in Massachusetts with best potential return on investment.
After working in real estate adjacent roles for over a decade, I had the hypothesis that the best place to buy for a return on investment would be up-and-coming cities. Smaller cities where crime might be high now, but people still move to.
To test my hypothesis, we are going to look at places in Massachusetts that are growing faster than average, but where home prices are below average, and crime rates are higher than average.
In everyday terms, these might be “deals”. The best deal in Massachusetts at the moment according to Saturday Night Science? That would be Palmer Town.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 Best Places To Buy A Home In Massachusetts For 2026
The methodology that wen’t into this can be a bit complicated, so we’ll break it down for you in as much detail as we can below.
For more Massachusetts reading:
- Best Counties To Live In Massachusetts
- Best Places To Raise A Family In Massachusetts
- Best Places To Retire In Massachusetts
The 10 Best Cities To Buy A House In Massachusetts For 2026
/10
Population: 12,381
Median Home Price: $317,071
Population Change: 0.1%
Home Price Change: 0.7%
More on Palmer Town: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
/10
Population: 12,606
Median Home Price: $252,588
Population Change: -0.4%
Home Price Change: 0.2%
More on North Adams: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
/10
Population: 17,928
Median Home Price: $344,409
Population Change: 0.7%
Home Price Change: 4.5%
More on Southbridge Town: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
/10
Population: 18,652
Median Home Price: $923,542
Population Change: 1.1%
Home Price Change: 0.8%
More on Newburyport: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
/10
Population: 18,759
Median Home Price: $758,914
Population Change: -0.3%
Home Price Change: 1.3%
More on Winthrop Town: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
/10
Population: 21,148
Median Home Price: $369,177
Population Change: 0.3%
Home Price Change: 0.7%
More on Gardner: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
/10
Population: 29,650
Median Home Price: $908,130
Population Change: 0.5%
Home Price Change: 2.9%
More on Melrose: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
/10
Population: 28,772
Median Home Price: $375,602
Population Change: 0.5%
Home Price Change: -1.2%
More on West Springfield Town: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
/10
Population: 30,962
Median Home Price: $486,075
Population Change: 8.1%
Home Price Change: 2.3%
More on Northampton: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
/10
Population: 28,539
Median Home Price: $364,036
Population Change: 0.1%
Home Price Change: 1.7%
More on Agawam Town: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
Methodology: How do you determine the best places to buy a home in Massachusetts for 2026?
We were in real estate for almost five years and have worked on this site for another 11. Suffice it to say we’ve put a lot of thought into finding an excellent place to buy a home.
So all that thinking has come to this moment where we get to spell out how we’d approach finding an up-and-coming place to live in Massachusetts. Put differently, the analysis will try to find places in Massachusetts with undervalued homes relative to pent-up demand using Saturday Night Science.
To do that, we looked at the most recent American Community Survey Census data for 2020-2024 and compared it to the previous vintage. Specifically, we used the following criteria:
- Y-o-Y Change In Population (People want to live here)
- Y-o-Y Change In Median Home Prices (People are willing to pay for it)
- Home Prices Relative To The State Average (It’s still kinda cheap)
We want places that are growing, have seen home prices increase in recent years, and are still “cheap” for Massachusetts with the following caveats:
- Home prices had to be within 20% of the state average (Much lower than that, and you get to some of the more dangerous places)
- Home prices increased in the last year, and
- Above 5,000 people (Bigger cities have more data points)
So of the 0 cities and towns in Massachusetts, only 48 places made it through our initial filters to even be considered.
We then ranked each place from 1 to 48 for the above criteria, with 1 being the best. We averaged the rankings to create a “best place to buy” index, with the place having the lowest index being the best.
Turns out that Palmer Town is the best potential gem in the not-so-rough in the Bay State.
Summary: The Best Places To Purchase A House In Massachusetts for 2026
There’s our analysis of the best places to buy a house in Massachusetts. And, to be clear, we aren’t necessarily saying these places are the best places to live, just that it looks like they might be in a couple of years based on the data.
In fact, every place in the following table meets our criteria, so even though it may not look super long, remember we started off with all 0 places in the state.
The best cities to buy a house in Massachusetts are Palmer Town, North Adams, Southbridge Town, Newburyport, Winthrop Town, Gardner, Melrose, West Springfield Town, Northampton, and Agawam Town.
So if we’d could rent or buy in these cities, we’d definitely buy.
For more Massachusetts reading, check out:
Best Places To Buy A Home In Massachusetts
| Rank | City | Population | Median Home Price | Population Change | Home Price Increase |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Palmer Town | 12,381 | $317,071 | 0.1% | 0.7% |
| 2 | North Adams | 12,606 | $252,588 | -0.4% | 0.2% |
| 3 | Southbridge Town | 17,928 | $344,409 | 0.7% | 4.5% |
| 4 | Newburyport | 18,652 | $923,542 | 1.1% | 0.8% |
| 5 | Winthrop Town | 18,759 | $758,914 | -0.3% | 1.3% |
| 6 | Gardner | 21,148 | $369,177 | 0.3% | 0.7% |
| 7 | Melrose | 29,650 | $908,130 | 0.5% | 2.9% |
| 8 | West Springfield Town | 28,772 | $375,602 | 0.5% | -1.2% |
| 9 | Northampton | 30,962 | $486,075 | 8.1% | 2.3% |
| 10 | Agawam Town | 28,539 | $364,036 | 0.1% | 1.7% |
| 11 | Gloucester | 30,075 | $760,558 | 0.7% | 0.2% |
| 12 | Franklin Town | 33,154 | $714,637 | 0.3% | 2.1% |
| 13 | Braintree Town | 38,899 | $767,326 | 0.4% | -0.3% |
| 14 | Marlborough | 41,647 | $578,933 | 0.6% | 1.2% |
| 15 | Chelsea | 39,908 | $526,190 | 1.1% | 0.1% |
| 16 | Holyoke | 37,813 | $322,895 | -0.4% | 1.9% |
| 17 | Woburn | 41,939 | $758,602 | 1.8% | 2.2% |
| 18 | Fitchburg | 41,798 | $396,820 | 0.4% | 0.5% |
| 19 | Westfield | 40,378 | $378,737 | -0.7% | 1.0% |
| 20 | Leominster | 43,909 | $463,493 | 0.5% | 0.9% |
| 21 | Beverly | 42,665 | $755,766 | 0.6% | 2.4% |
| 22 | Pittsfield | 43,457 | $302,830 | -0.2% | -1.0% |
| 23 | Salem | 44,795 | $606,558 | 1.3% | -0.1% |
| 24 | Barnstable Town | 49,568 | $703,888 | 0.7% | 2.0% |
| 25 | Attleboro | 46,762 | $532,570 | 0.6% | 0.7% |
| 26 | Everett | 50,045 | $639,069 | 1.6% | 2.0% |
| 27 | Peabody | 54,695 | $694,094 | 1.0% | 0.9% |
| 28 | Revere | 60,012 | $612,970 | 0.1% | 0.6% |
| 29 | Chicopee | 55,295 | $311,122 | 0.1% | 0.4% |
| 30 | Weymouth Town | 58,505 | $645,007 | 1.2% | 1.2% |
| 31 | Taunton | 60,433 | $513,321 | 1.2% | 2.1% |
| 32 | Medford | 59,354 | $842,297 | 0.5% | 1.4% |
| 33 | Malden | 65,906 | $684,055 | 0.6% | 2.7% |
| 34 | Waltham | 64,902 | $826,437 | 0.3% | 1.4% |
| 35 | Haverhill | 67,698 | $543,991 | 0.5% | 1.6% |
| 36 | Lawrence | 88,736 | $504,150 | 0.5% | 0.8% |
| 37 | Somerville | 81,036 | $940,239 | 0.6% | 0.5% |
| 38 | Newton | 89,044 | $1,528,893 | 0.6% | 1.9% |
| 39 | Fall River | 94,082 | $445,781 | 0.3% | 1.7% |
| 40 | Lynn | 101,709 | $580,315 | 0.8% | 0.8% |
| 41 | Quincy | 102,114 | $675,958 | 0.7% | 1.0% |
| 42 | New Bedford | 100,998 | $434,261 | 0.3% | 1.5% |
| 43 | Brockton | 105,386 | $503,832 | 0.3% | 1.2% |
| 44 | Lowell | 118,368 | $480,318 | 3.1% | 0.7% |
| 45 | Cambridge | 118,796 | $1,041,569 | 0.9% | 0.2% |
| 46 | Springfield | 154,749 | $294,613 | -0.0% | 0.5% |
| 47 | Worcester | 207,055 | $430,111 | 0.8% | 0.1% |
| 48 | Boston | 666,442 | $798,216 | 0.4% | 1.7% |