Homeownership is fundamental to the American dream. It offers wealth, security, community, and countless other benefits. Yet for many Massachusetts residents, the dream feels increasingly out of reach—even as incomes rise and mortgage rates fall. Near-record prices have made homes hard to come by and often even harder to afford, leaving buyers and sellers stuck and younger generations priced out.
But affordable pockets still exist. In cities across the state, residents can comfortably spend around 30% of their income or less on housing, which is widely considered the affordable threshold.
To find out where these cities are, Redfin Real Estate ranked the most affordable cities in Massachusetts, based on their local payment to income ratios. All data is an average for the January-October 2025 period. To see the most affordable cities in the country, read this recent Redfin article.
#1. Franklin, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 39.5%
- Median sale price: $736,868
- Median household income: $142,788
- Income needed to buy: $188,169
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $4,704
- See homes for sale in Franklin on Redfin.com
#2. Reading, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 43.0%
- Median sale price: $918,329
- Median household income: $163,725
- Income needed to buy: $234,507
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $5,863
- See homes for sale in Reading on Redfin.com
#3. Randolph, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 44.0%
- Median sale price: $591,845
- Median household income: $103,129
- Income needed to buy: $151,135
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $3,778
- See homes for sale in Randolph on Redfin.com
#4. Attleboro, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 44.5%
- Median sale price: $541,201
- Median household income: $93,266
- Income needed to buy: $138,203
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $3,455
- See homes for sale in Attleboro on Redfin.com
#5. Bridgewater, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 44.8%
- Median sale price: $658,016
- Median household income: $112,482
- Income needed to buy: $168,033
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $4,201
- See homes for sale in Bridgewater on Redfin.com
#6. Leominster, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 45.5%
- Median sale price: $484,296
- Median household income: $81,556
- Income needed to buy: $123,671
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $3,092
- See homes for sale in Leominster on Redfin.com
#7. Braintree, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 45.8%
- Median sale price: $749,704
- Median household income: $125,305
- Income needed to buy: $191,447
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $4,786
- See homes for sale in Braintree on Redfin.com
#8. Methuen, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 46.2%
- Median sale price: $623,153
- Median household income: $103,270
- Income needed to buy: $159,130
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $3,978
- See homes for sale in Methuen on Redfin.com
#9. Milton, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 46.4%
- Median sale price: $1,079,133
- Median household income: $178,053
- Income needed to buy: $275,570
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $6,889
- See homes for sale in Milton on Redfin.com
#10. Danvers, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 47.6%
- Median sale price: $727,348
- Median household income: $117,072
- Income needed to buy: $185,738
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $4,643
- See homes for sale in Danvers on Redfin.com
#11. North Attleborough, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 47.8%
- Median sale price: $682,907
- Median household income: $109,426
- Income needed to buy: $174,389
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $4,360
- See homes for sale in North Attleborough on Redfin.com
#12. Burlington, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 49.0%
- Median sale price: $910,253
- Median household income: $142,207
- Income needed to buy: $232,445
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $5,811
- See homes for sale in Burlington on Redfin.com
#13. Milford, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 49.2%
- Median sale price: $572,027
- Median household income: $88,992
- Income needed to buy: $146,075
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $3,652
- See homes for sale in Milford on Redfin.com
#14. Marlborough, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 49.2%
- Median sale price: $611,016
- Median household income: $95,047
- Income needed to buy: $156,031
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $3,901
- See homes for sale in Marlborough on Redfin.com
#15. Wakefield, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 49.4%
- Median sale price: $840,917
- Median household income: $130,320
- Income needed to buy: $214,739
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $5,368
- See homes for sale in Wakefield on Redfin.com
#16. Dedham, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 49.6%
- Median sale price: $805,654
- Median household income: $124,375
- Income needed to buy: $205,734
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $5,143
- See homes for sale in Dedham on Redfin.com
#17. Taunton, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 50.1%
- Median sale price: $521,272
- Median household income: $79,715
- Income needed to buy: $133,114
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $3,328
- See homes for sale in Taunton on Redfin.com
#18. Brockton, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 50.1%
- Median sale price: $504,566
- Median household income: $77,089
- Income needed to buy: $128,847
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $3,221
- See homes for sale in Brockton on Redfin.com
#19. Weymouth, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 51.0%
- Median sale price: $666,444
- Median household income: $100,077
- Income needed to buy: $170,185
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $4,255
- See homes for sale in Weymouth on Redfin.com
#20. Haverhill, Massachusetts
- Payment to income ratio: 52.3%
- Median sale price: $598,847
- Median household income: $87,675
- Income needed to buy: $152,923
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $3,823
- See homes for sale in Haverhill on Redfin.com
This story was produced by Redfin Real Estate and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/7QOJU3BNCJERBNKJC5LWTBYFLU.png)
