A repost of Scott’s Zillow findings.
Boston is Nation’s 7th Most Valuable Real Estate Market
By Scott Van Voorhis
Boston.com Correspondent
Feeling any richer? You should be. The total value of all homes and condos in Greater Boston came in just under the $600 billion mark in 2014, a new report finds.
Boston area residential values have jumped $28 billion this year, for a nearly 5 percent gain, according to Zillow.
The Zillow Home Value Index, a blend of property assessments by local officials and market prices, pegs the median home value for the Boston area at $364,900. (Zillow pegs the median rent at $2,137.)
The increase makes Boston the seventh most valuable real estate market in the country, behind Los Angeles ($2.2 trillion), New York ($2.1 trillion), San Francisco ($1 trillion), Washington ($943 billion) Chicago ($738 billion) and Miami/Fort Lauderdale ($717 billion).
Boston edged out Philadelphia ($573 billion) and San Diego ($538 billion) and smoked Seattle ($465 billion) and Minneapolis-St. Paul ($292 billion).
However, for buyers, there are two bits of good news.
First, the pace at which home prices are rising appears to be slacking off a bit. This year’s 4.9 percent jump in overall home and condo values is a step down from 2013, when Boston area real estate values hot up 8.1 percent, or $46.5 billion.
Second, inventory, or the number of homes on the market, also shows signs of improving, with 8.2 percent more listings this year compared to 2013.