Housing in Roslindale, MA 02131 (Rozzi)
Six miles south-southwest of downtown Boston is Roslindale. Once considered a garden suburb of Boston, it now boasts a diverse community that many cultures call home - both for its natural beauty of valley-like and hilly surroundings, and its affordability. Roslindale is a thriving, mixed community evident from the diverse local shops and commercial businesses that line Roslindale's main thruway, Washington Street, which extends from Dedham and Hyde Park, through Roslindale, and east to Jamaica Plain. The area has grown as a desirable urban bedroom community due to its proximity to Boston, its excellent transportation hub of buses, subway, and commuter rail services, and for cyclists, dedicated bicycle lanes. Plan your commute here.
Churches
Within the neighborhood of Roslindale there are church services for all faiths of its Hispanic, Russian, Greek, and English-speaking denizens.
Roslindale Square
Roslindale Square is a bustling area of conveniently located mixed commercial, housing, office, and retail businesses.
Housing Market
On average, about 22 homes sell each month in Roslindale, of which about 1/3 are single-family detached houses. Those have been priced from $485,000 for older, smaller homes to $1,550,000 for a newer, larger homes. The preponderance of sales consists of condos and townhomes/duplexes offered for sale from $289,900 to $1,395,000. The multi-family properties have been running from $645,000 to $1,365,000. Rentals in the area have been running from $1,200 to $5,000. Of course, pricing for home sales and rentals varies depending upon size, location, and amenities. Real estate sales and pricing are very fluid and can fluctuate in a matter of hours because homes come on and off the market daily... even hourly.
Modern Meets Traditional
Boston zoning is fussy about property designs in Roslindale in an attempt to preserve the archaic look born in the 1920s, which is to say, detached garages set off in the back yard if you are not happy with a one-car, attached garage. So, even though West Roxbury has two-car front entry garages, they remain verboten in Rozzi. The architect is required to design side-entry garages or rear, detached garages. With the growth of apartment buildings and condominium complexes, it is good to see that developers are required to build ample underground or off-street parking to house residents' vehicles.
How to tell the difference between a buyer's market and a seller's market
Roslindale 2005 - Present
They say you cannot compare your home's value on the east coast to a home in the midwest or west coast. This is true because real estate markets are not necessarily "national". They are local. In fact, not only are real estate markets not just local, but they are also hyper local. One part of Boston like Downtown can be deep in a buyer's market while another neighborhood like Roslindale can be enjoying a seller's market. In 2024, Texas was, generally speaking, a seller's market as was Roslindale's. Today there are reports all around that it is a buyer's market in Texas. However, whatever is affecting the Texas market has not affected Roslindale. Roslindale has been a popular destination for buyers for many years now; perhaps because it took longer to appreciate than its neighbor to the east, Jamaica Plain. The switch from a buyer's market to a seller's market and vice versa does not take months or years to occur. It can happen overnight. Challenge is, we do not know on which night it is going to happen. BUT, we can see it happen in the data.
Observe the rising and falling of the graph lines below. The taller the line, the more pronounced a buyer's market is occurring caused by a great number of homes on the market which are over-priced and fail to sell. As the market softens, the length of the lines fall. The greatest change occurred between 2006 and 2013. After 2013, the overall Boston real estate market has moderated upward indicating a softening of the seller's market and tendency towards a buyer's market. However, Roslindale's market has defied what's been going on in other areas and has remained a seller's market from 2013 to present.
Roslindale 2018 - Present
Numbers don't lie. Therefore, the following chart must be true because it is full of numbers! The chart is a 7 year, 10 month historical story of sales data for Roslindale. You can not only see the number of sales that have occurred, you can also see which months have typically slow sales or have sales flying off the shelf in "normal" cycles. Given that sales take 30+ days to close, the time to list a property for sale should be the month before the perceived best time to sell. Looking at 2024 and 2025, May-July and Oct-Nov were the months when the most sales closed. Therefore, listing in April and September are good times, whereas August is not a particularly good time to sell. On the other hand, buyers can expect to get a better deal in August or in the winter... provided there is a desirable home on the market to buy. This said, the number of homes that have sold in Roslindale has fallen precipitously since 2022.
The time it might take to sell due to the number of competing homes on the market is determined by a formula called the "absorption rate" (AR). It is generally accepted that a seller's market occurs when a property can be listed and sold within 3 months with an AR of less than 3. An AR between 3 and 6 indicates a neutral market. An AR greater than 6 indicates a buyer's market. Roslindale appears to be on the edge of turning from a seller's market to neutral. Will it remain a seller's market or eventually flip into a buyer's market? Only time will tell. According to the numbers, odds are that the sooner you list the better off you will be.
Area Schools
Great Schools provides ratings for most schools in the United States. Below, generate a list of schools that are near the address you are thinking of buying and then compare it to other neighboring schools. If you wish, you can expand the range or search in other areas by modifying the search criteria.