Massachusetts Home Buyer Guide

Greater Boston home buyers saw the average price of a single-family home increase by 5.2 percent in February compared to February 2012, according to the Case-Shiller Home Price Index, which was last released April 30, 2013. 

The report showed that home prices in Boston, using seasonally adjusted data, increased 1.1 percent from January to February. The index is made up of 20 cities, and all 20 cities have shown an increase in home values for at least two consecutive months on a year-over-year basis. 

Boston home buyers may find it hard to believe, but Boston real estate price increases are modest compared to the rest of the country where the average price jumped 9.3 percent from February 2012 to February 2013, according to Case-Shiller's data from 20 metropolitan areas.

Phoenix led the way with a 23 percent increase in home prices. San Francisco home prices increased 18.9 percent while Atlanta saw single-family home prices increase by 16.5 percent. Las Vegas posted a 17.6 increase, and home prices in Detroit jumped 15.2 percent.

Only New York, at a 1.9 percent increase in home prices, and Chicago, up 5.1 percent, trailed Boston in home price increases.

Boston home buyers still have an opportunity to take advantage of the recent real estate decline. According to Boston.com, "[Boston] [h]ome values ... are still down nearly 16 percent compared to 2005, when sales slowed and prices began to tumble. Nationwide, home values are still down about 29 percent ..."