***UPDATED*** This market report has been updated, check out our 2022 South Boston Apartment Rental Market Report!
The apartment rental market in South Boston has been one of the steadiest and most reliable market’s in Greater Boston. While most of the City and surrounding areas see large annual variances in apartment availability depending on local universities semester cycles, South Boston apartments are by and large insulated from this trend so much that it’s hard to notice any variance at all.
It will be incredibly interesting to see how the Coronavirus impacts these real time data figures in the coming weeks. Stay tuned for updates as situations can rapidly change.
This signifies what the apartment rental market is like in Southie. It’s steady, it’s reliable, and it’s tough, just like the blue-collar residents that built it. Even as the neighborhood has gentrified and neighboring Seaport has been developed into a luxury high rise contest, to locals South Boston still represents the toughness and grit that embodies Boston. Over the years we watched the South Boston rental market make a steady rise to one of the most reliable rental markets in the greater footprint that we monitor. We have always seen a huge number of calls and web traffic demand for South Boston apartments.
Average Rent Prices in South Boston
The location and neighborhood feel of South Boston has made it one of the most popular neighborhoods for natives and transplants alike. High demand combined with unusually low turnover took this this once humble working class neighborhood to one of Boston’s most expensive places to live. Apartment prices in South Boston are significantly higher for apartments sized 2 bedroom and up compared to the City’s average. Renters looking for smaller South Boston 1 bedroom apartments and studios can still find some good deals in South Boston compared to the rest of the City, although options are limited.
|
Town Neighborhood |
1BR Apartment |
2BR Apartment |
3BR Apartment |
4BR Apartment |
5 BR Apartment |
|
All Areas |
$2,154.00 |
$2,566.00 |
$3,090.00 |
$3,798.00 |
$4,558.00 |
|
City Of Boston |
$2,189.00 |
$2,602.00 |
$3,082.00 |
$3,736.00 |
$4,472.00 |
|
Outside Boston |
$2,078.00 |
$2,500.00 |
$3,105.00 |
$3,918.00 |
$4,701.00 |
|
BOSTON - SOUTH BOSTON |
$2,153.00 |
$2,800.00 |
$3,609.00 |
$4,652.00 |
$6,259.00 |
|
BOSTON - SOUTH END |
$2,634.00 |
$3,265.00 |
$3,964.00 |
$5,485.00 |
$6,000.00 |
|
BOSTON - DORCHESTER |
$1,725.00 |
$2,063.00 |
$2,481.00 |
$2,999.00 |
$3,473.00 |
|
BOSTON - ROXBURY |
$1,813.00 |
$2,270.00 |
$2,746.00 |
$2,921.00 |
$3,563.00 |
|
BOSTON - BACK BAY |
$2,660.00 |
$3,614.00 |
$4,725.00 |
|
|
|
BOSTON - FENWAY/KENMORE |
$2,385.00 |
$2,967.00 |
$3,964.00 |
$5,237.00 |
$6,175.00 |
|
BOSTON - NORTH END |
$2,312.00 |
$2,947.00 |
$4,092.00 |
$5,522.00 |
|
Comparing the neighborhoods within South Boston, the East Side is pulling in the highest rent prices at the moment, followed closely by the West Side and Andrew Square. Across the board in all micro-markets, renting a smaller size apartment in the range of 1-2 bedroom apartment in South Boston is still reasonable in comparison to Boston as a whole. Seaport District simply has very little apartment inventory that is in a non-luxury buildings, which is why it shows few prices below. It's important to note that we intentionally exclude larger luxury buildings to maintain the highest data integrity. We often provide luxury building data in separate reports.
|
Town Neighborhood |
Studio |
Bedroom 1 |
Bedroom 2 |
Bedroom 3 |
Bedroom 4 |
Bedroom 5 |
|
All Areas |
$1,804 |
$2,154 |
$2,566 |
$3,090 |
$3,798 |
$4,558 |
|
City Of Boston |
$1,827 |
$2,189 |
$2,602 |
$3,082 |
$3,736 |
$4,472 |
|
Outside Boston |
$1,720 |
$2,078 |
$2,500 |
$3,105 |
$3,918 |
$4,701 |
|
BOSTON - SOUTH BOSTON |
$1,974 |
$2,153 |
$2,800 |
$3,609 |
$4,652 |
$6,259 |
|
BOSTON - SOUTH BOSTON - ANDREW SQUARE |
$1,988 |
$1,985 |
$2,720 |
$3,248 |
$4,518 |
|
|
BOSTON - SOUTH BOSTON - EAST SIDE |
$1,958 |
$2,151 |
$2,860 |
$3,808 |
$5,082 |
$6,324 |
|
BOSTON - SOUTH BOSTON - SEAPORT |
|
|
|
$4,000 |
|
|
|
BOSTON - SOUTH BOSTON - THOMAS PARK |
$1,600 |
$2,345 |
$3,030 |
$3,275 |
$3,000 |
|
|
BOSTON - SOUTH BOSTON - WEST SIDE |
$2,041 |
$2,284 |
$2,781 |
$3,850 |
$4,377 |
$6,000 |
Those prices for 2 and 1 bedroom apartments in Southie may sound very enticing for many apartment hunters in Boston. The chart below will explain why they are so hard to come by. South Boston’s vacancy and availability rates are consistently among the lowest in the City. In fact, at the moment South Boston has the City’s lowest availability rate of all Boston neighborhoods at 2.03%. Out of 2,544 non-luxury units in South Boston, only 20 are currently vacant and another 30 becoming available in upcoming months.
|
Town Neighborhood |
Total Apartments |
Total Available Non Luxury |
Real Time Availability Rate |
Total Vacant Non Luxury |
Real Time Vacancy Rate |
|
All Areas |
151859 |
3161 |
4.40% |
711 |
0.99% |
|
City Of Boston |
122373 |
2207 |
5.21% |
395 |
0.93% |
|
Outside Boston |
31039 |
954 |
3.24% |
316 |
1.07% |
|
BOSTON - SOUTH BOSTON |
2544 |
51 |
2.03% |
20 |
0.80% |
|
BOSTON - SOUTH END |
2048 |
59 |
3.05% |
12 |
0.62% |
|
BOSTON - DORCHESTER |
2824 |
102 |
3.66% |
66 |
2.37% |
|
BOSTON - ROXBURY |
788 |
82 |
10.41% |
23 |
2.92% |
|
BOSTON - BACK BAY |
2638 |
75 |
2.89% |
18 |
0.69% |
|
BOSTON - FENWAY/KENMORE |
3263 |
165 |
5.12% |
18 |
0.56% |
|
BOSTON - NORTH END |
1215 |
84 |
7.05% |
15 |
1.26% |
|
BOSTON - CHARLESTOWN |
676 |
16 |
2.52% |
6 |
0.95% |
Despite the incredibly low inventory, we’re entering the time of year where availability tends to loosen up in South Boston. We’ve seen a historical uptick in apartments becoming available right around the 3rd week of March in South Boston in recent years. So for anyone looking to rent in Southie, now would be the best time to start looking. What limited options are available in next few months will begin to dissipate around August.
If you’re looking to become a resident of Southie, you’re not out of luck! Despite low inventory and high prices, the apartment experts found here on South Boston Apartments can help you find a place in South Boston that you can call home!
We constantly call on our South Boston landlords to ensure our listings and prices are up to date. Get started by filling out our apartment search service form to give us and idea of what you’re looking for. We’ll go to work compiling a list of apartments that fit your needs, and keep you updated in real time as new listings become available.
Our vast database and technology capabilities has made us the area’s expert in apartment rentals, and for that reason South Boston landlords trust us to manage their South Boston listings and their properties. Join our network of 15,000+ local landlords that all utilize the Boston Pads technology platform to streamline their marketing and maximize their ROI.
