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Despite heading into April with the largest number of homes on the market in six years, the Greater Boston residential real estate market remains one where home-sellers have the upper hand heading into the spring market.

MLS data aggregated by listings portal Realtor.com shows there were 6,510 single-family homes, condominiums and townhouses on the market in the metro area in March. That’s up over 11 percent year-over-year, and the highest since March 2020, when 8,444 listings were on the market.

Also, according to Realtor.com, the median days on market for a residential listing sat at 30 days, an 18 percent increase year-over-year, further signaling that the market dynamics are shifting ever so slightly.

The average sale-to-list percentage sat at 99.8 percent, an indication that now buyers are having some difficulty fetching over-asking offers and sales. Meanwhile, 37 percent of homes sold over asking in Boston last month, according to Redfin, a decline from the 45 percent that did so a year ago.

Heading into the spring market, sellers will still have the upper hand on buyers, said Lamacchia Realty CEO Anthony Lamacchia, with inventory remaining low and demand being high.

“The buyer demand is strong,” he said. “At this time of year, there’s never enough sellers, and this year is no different.”

Monthly data on the dollar volume of mortgage rate-locks published by Optimal Blue was nearly 40 percent higher year over year. Purchase lock volume increased by 5 percent compared to February 2025. The chief concern, market-watchers say, is that geopolitical and economic uncertainty could cause the spring market to stall, Optimal Blue analysts said.

The average rate on a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage dropped slightly 6.37 percent Thursday, according to mortgage-buyer Freddie Mac, after ending the prior seven-day period at 6.46 percent.

“March arrived with real momentum, rates below 6%, listings climbing, and cautious optimism building around the spring season,” said Danielle Hale, Chief Economist, Realtor.com. “Then the backdrop shifted. Mortgage rates have risen over the past four weeks, the Fed is signaling caution, and uncertainty is once again threatening to sideline buyers and sellers. So far, our data shows a market where so far none of the key warning signs are flashing red, but the path to a strong spring homebuying and selling season has narrowed.”

Boston Remains Sellers’ Market Heading Into Spring

by Sam Lattof time to read: 1 min
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