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Housing: Goals & Measures
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Indicator Measures
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How are we doing?
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6.1.1 Housing costs as a percentage of the cost of living, Boston vs. selected cities
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In 2002, the latest year for which data are available, Boston was the fourth most expensive housing market in the US. Among 15 comparable cities, only Manhattan, San Francisco and Chicago had higher housing costs. Boston’s housing costs were 81% higher than the US average. |
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6.1.2 Housing units within a 10-minute walk of public transit nodes, Boston
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In Boston, almost 80% of jobs, 51% of public schools, and 56% of residences are located within a one-quarter mile (or ten-minute walk) of a public transit or trolley stop. While 76% of Asian and white households were close to rail transit, only 54% of Latino households and 41% of black households were. Almost 98% of Bostonians are within a ten-minute walk of a bus or transit stop. |
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6.2.1 Median home price vs. median household income, Metro region
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Between 1996 and 2003, median housing prices in the Boston region increased by 131%. With the decline in interest rates, the amount of income needed to purchase the median-priced home increased by 87%. However, median income increased by only 52% during this period. The housing affordability gap in Metro Boston increased from $2,000 in 1970 to $84,000 in 2002. Between 2003 and 2004, mortgage rates held steady while prices continued to rise, increasing the affordability gap further. |
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6.2.2 Median home prices by neighborhood, Boston
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In Boston in 2000, 79% of households could not afford the median priced single-family home at $216,000. Since then, prices have risen in all Boston neighborhoods, with the greatest percentage increases occurring in traditionally lower-income neighborhoods. |
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6.2.3 Median advertised two-bedroom rental, Boston
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Citywide, asking rents in 2004 were 60% higher, on average, than in 1995. Rents are stabilizing, yet in 2003, advertised rents in 16 of 20 Boston-area communities exceeded 30% of the median income for the renters in these communities. In Boston, the median income renter had to spend 54% of his or her income to afford the 2003 median rent.
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