Local news for the towns of Buzzards Bay
and the lower Taunton River

36°ClearNew Bedford, Oct. 18, 10:50 p.m.

Top stories

Fall River Government Center, a concrete city hall above a wide plaza

Fall River Government Center on Main Street. File photo, 2020. Photo: Kenneth C. Zirkel, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Real Estate

Fall River housing market

Home prices, sales, homes for sale, rents and the public record for Fall River, updated every week.

This week's market story, Oct. 19, 2026

Fall River homes take 10 days longer to sell as the number on the market climbs 20%

Redfin counted 390 homes for sale in the city at some point from July to September, up from 324 a year earlier. The median sale price slipped 2%, and mortgage rates rose past 7%.

Homes in Fall River took longer to sell this summer, and more of them were on the market. The typical home that sold from July to September spent 38 days on the market, 10 days longer than in the same three months of 2025, according to Redfin, a national real estate brokerage. The median sale price slipped 2%, to $489,767 from $499,900.

Read the full story

Homes in Fall River sold for a median $489,767 in the three months ending Sept. 30, 2026, down 2.0% from the same months a year earlier, according to Redfin. In all, 157 homes sold, and the typical one went under contract in 38 days. Zillow puts the typical home in town at $448,192, up 2.1% from a year earlier.

Sales and prices

Median sale price

$489,767

Down 2.0% from a year earlier

Redfin, three months ending Sept. 30, 2026; Redfin updated it Oct. 7, 2026

Homes sold

157

Down 2.2% from a year earlier

Redfin, three months ending Sept. 30, 2026; Redfin updated it Oct. 7, 2026

Price per square foot

$249

Down 4.0% from a year earlier

Redfin, three months ending Sept. 30, 2026; Redfin updated it Oct. 7, 2026

Sale price to list price

100.1%

Unchanged from a year earlier

41% of homes sold for more than their first asking price.

Redfin, three months ending Sept. 30, 2026; Redfin updated it Oct. 7, 2026

Supply and speed

Homes for sale

390

Up 20.5% from a year earlier

Every home listed at any point in the three months.

Redfin, three months ending Sept. 30, 2026; Redfin updated it Oct. 7, 2026

For sale on the last day

197

Up 40.6% from a year earlier

About 3.8 months of supply at the recent pace of sales.

Redfin, three months ending Sept. 30, 2026; Redfin updated it Oct. 7, 2026

New listings

222

Up 9.5% from a year earlier

Redfin, three months ending Sept. 30, 2026; Redfin updated it Oct. 7, 2026

Days on market

38

10 days slower than a year earlier

Median days from listing to accepted offer.

Redfin, three months ending Sept. 30, 2026; Redfin updated it Oct. 7, 2026

Values, rents and borrowing

Typical home value

$448,192

Up 2.1% from a year earlier

A middle-of-the-market value for every home in town, sold or not.

Zillow Home Value Index, September 2026

Typical asking rent

$1,888 a month

Up 2.4% from a year earlier

Asking rents for homes and apartments listed for rent.

Zillow Observed Rent Index, September 2026

30-year mortgage rate

7.40%

Up 1.1 percentage points from a year earlier

A national average. On a $489,767 home with 20% down, principal and interest come to about $2,713 a month.

Freddie Mac, week of Oct. 15, 2026

Month by month

Each row is a three-month window, so each month counts in three rows. That smooths out the swings a town this size would show month to month.

Fall River home sales by three-month window, newest first
Three monthsMedian priceSoldDays on marketSale to listFor salePer sq. ft.
July to September 2026$489,76715738100.1%390$249
June to August 2026$491,75016631100.4%400$243
May to July 2026$490,00016628100.5%390$247
April to June 2026$492,50015732100.2%379$244
March to May 2026$467,5001404699.0%366$248
February to April 2026$475,0001295299.0%315$261
January to March 2026$467,5001224798.7%272$260
December 2025 to February 2026$485,0001373499.9%279$249
November 2025 to January 2026$477,5001323299.7%310$245
October to December 2025$470,00013326100.1%303$245
September to November 2025$468,7501162699.4%326$243
August to October 2025$475,00014326100.3%329$249

Source: Redfin, three months ending Sept. 30, 2026; Redfin updated it Oct. 7, 2026. Read Oct. 18, 2026.

Tax bills, fiscal 2018 to 2026

The average single-family tax bill in Fall River went from $3,173 in fiscal 2018 to $4,651 in fiscal 2026, up 47%, while the average assessed value rose 87%. When values climb faster than the town's budget, the rate per $1,000 falls. The fiscal 2027 rate is set at the tax classification hearing late this year.

Average single-family tax bill in Fall River by fiscal year
Fiscal yearAverage billChangeAverage valueRate per $1,000
2026$4,651+5.3%$405,164$11.48
2025$4,415+7.6%$385,589$11.45
2024$4,103+2.0%$357,122$11.49
2023$4,024+12.3%$327,990$12.27
2022$3,584+3.0%$283,995
2021$3,481+3.4%$251,671
2020$3,366+2.5%$232,914
2019$3,285+3.5%$225,292
2018$3,173$217,054

Source: Mass. Department of Revenue, Division of Local Services, Municipal Databank, average single-family tax bill and tax rates by class. The rate column shows the years the state's rate report covers. Read Oct. 18, 2026.

Who owns, who rents

The Census Bureau's survey of households, averaged over five years so a small town has enough answers to count. It moves slowly; use it for the shape of a town, not for this year's prices.

Housing profile of Fall River
MeasureFall RiverMassachusetts
Homes and apartments44,576
Owned by the people living there35%63%
Median value, owner-occupied homes$395,500$562,100
Median rent paid$1,155$1,762
Renters paying 30% or more of income for housing50%49%
Median household income$56,673$103,960
Median year built19451964

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020 to 2024, tables B25001, B25003, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077 and B19013. Read Oct. 18, 2026.

Notable sales in Fall River, first quarter of 2026

The first quarter's largest recorded sales in Fall River, Freetown, Somerset and Swansea, as the Fall River registry listed them on April 28, 2026. We print the address and price. We leave out the names of private buyers and sellers.

Largest recorded property sales, first quarter 2026
AddressTypeRecordedPriceRecord
400 Columbia StCommercialFeb. 20, 2026$5,710,500Book 11992, page 63.
47 Slade StWarehouseMarch 27, 2026$2,650,000Book 12016, page 37.
764-770 Plymouth AveCondominiumMarch 5, 2026$1,950,000Book 12000, page 68.
72 Belmont StThree-family homeMarch 27, 2026$1,200,000Book 12016, page 220.
49 Hamlet StSix-family buildingJan. 9, 2026$1,080,000Book 11964, page 171.
377 Second StCommercialJan. 9, 2026$1,075,000Book 11965, page 333.
383 Alden StSix-family buildingJan. 2, 2026$920,000Book 11961, page 206.
439 Martine StCommercialJan. 9, 2026$910,000Book 11964, page 303.
Innovation WayVacant landJan. 28, 2026$900,000Book 11977, page 203.
650 Plymouth AveMixed useJan. 30, 2026$900,000Book 11979, page 30.

Source: Bristol County Fall River District Registry of Deeds, Significant Sales 2026, Q1. Read Oct. 18, 2026.

From the public record

Permits, tax bill and zoning status for Fall River
MeasureFall RiverNoteSource, read Oct. 18, 2026
New housing units permitted, January to August 202640 (40 single-family)Census estimate; the town filed no monthly reports this yearCensus Bureau, Building Permits Survey
Average single-family tax bill, fiscal 2026$4,651On an average value of $405,164; residential rate $11.48 per $1,000; up $236 from fiscal 2025Mass. Department of Revenue, Municipal Databank
MBTA Communities zoningCompliantCommuter Rail community; deadline 12/31/2024Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, status as of Aug. 31, 2026

Where these numbers come from

We refresh these figures every week. Redfin and Zillow post new months in the middle of each month; Freddie Mac posts rates on Thursdays. See an error? Email corrections@southcoast360.com.