Published October 18, 2026 in Market Update

More Back Bay listings gave buyers a little more room

By Liza Elmstrom

Real estate, Back Bay

Mortgage rates topped 7% in September 2026 for the first time since January 2025, according to Realtor.com. That is the number that changes what every Back Bay seller should think about right now.

When rates climb, buyers get more selective. They slow down. They compare more. So the condition of your listing and your price matter more than they did a year ago.

More choices for buyers, more competition for sellers

The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 116 homes for sale in Back Bay's ZIP 02116 in the three months ending August 31, 2026. That is up 6.4% from the same period in 2025. New listings jumped 15.3% to 113. Months of supply moved up to 4, a gain of 0.8 months.

More supply means buyers have real options. They can take a breath and compare. For sellers, that is a shift worth knowing.

Prices held up, and homes still sold close to full ask

The Real Estate Data Aggregator put the median sale price in ZIP 02116 at $1,450,000 for the three months ending August 31, 2026. That is up 5.1% from the same period in 2025. Homes sold at 99.2% of list price on average, up 1.8 points year over year.

The median home sat on the market 26 days, the same as a year ago. Not slow, not a sprint. Steady.

Fewer closings, but pending sales are rising

The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 88 homes sold in ZIP 02116 in the three months ending August 31, 2026. That is down 16.2% from a year ago. Fewer closings is the honest read.

But pending sales tell a different story. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 81 homes under contract, up 3.8% from a year ago. Buyers are still writing offers. They are just moving a little more carefully.

The Real Estate Data Aggregator found that 28.4% of Back Bay homes went under contract within two weeks of listing. That share is up slightly from a year ago. Well-priced homes in good condition are still moving fast.

Rates are the backdrop for all of this

Realtor.com reported that mortgage rates rose nearly 40 basis points over four weeks in September 2026. Nationally, homes under contract fell 4.1% year over year, according to Realtor.com.

Back Bay held up better than that. But rate-sensitive buyers do exist here too. Pricing to the market matters more when borrowing costs are this high.

These are ZIP 02116 numbers for the three months ending August 31, 2026. One block in Back Bay can read very differently from the whole ZIP. If you want to know what is happening on your specific street, just reach out.