More than half of Fairhaven home sales close above asking as sales slip
The median sale price was nearly unchanged at $507,973. Fewer homes sold, but a larger share of them went for more than the asking price.
FAIRHAVEN More than half the homes that sold in Fairhaven this summer went for more than their asking price, even as fewer of them changed hands. Redfin, a national real estate brokerage, found that 52.4% of the town's sales from July to September closed above list price, up from 42.3% in the same months of 2025. The number of sales fell to 43 from 52.
The median sale price barely moved. It was $507,973, down 0.9% from $512,500 a year earlier, and the median price per square foot slipped 1.5%, to $370.77 from $376.33.
Redfin reports town figures in three-month windows and counts only sales made through listing services, so private sales are left out. Forty-three sales is a thin sample, and a couple of unusually large or small homes can push Fairhaven's median by thousands of dollars. Over the past year the three-month median has bounced between $495,000 and $549,999 without settling into a direction.
Zillow's home value index, which estimates what a typical home is worth rather than tracking only the ones that sold, put Fairhaven at $505,791 in September, up 3.1% from a year earlier.
Competitive offers, more homes left over
The average home sold for 101.3% of its list price, up from 99.1%, and the median home spent 25 days on the market, two days fewer than a year earlier, Redfin data show.
Owners listed 51 homes during the three months, down from 58, and 81 homes were for sale at some point in the period, down from 88. But 39 were still unsold at the end of September, compared with 28 a year earlier, which raised Redfin's measure of supply to 2.8 months from 1.7. The median asking price was $544,440, about 9% above last year's $499,450.
Countywide, the pace was calmer. In Bristol County, 37.3% of September sales closed above asking and the median price was $557,752, up 1.4% from a year earlier, according to Redfin. The county figures cover one month, so the comparison with Fairhaven's three-month window is rough.
Rates and taxes
Borrowing got more expensive through the early fall. The average 30-year fixed rate was 7.40% for the week of Oct. 15 in Freddie Mac's weekly survey, up from 6.66% in late August and 6.27% a year earlier. With 20% down on Fairhaven's median price, principal and interest at today's rate come to about $2,814 a month, by our arithmetic, $307 more than the same loan at last year's rate. Neither figure counts property taxes or insurance.
Fairhaven's average single-family tax bill is $4,374 for fiscal 2026, up $140, or 3.3%, from $4,234, according to the state Department of Revenue. That is a little more than half the statewide average of $8,113. The town taxes homes at $9.19 per $1,000 of assessed value and commercial property at $18.20, and the average single-family home was assessed at $475,941.
Census Bureau permit data estimate that Fairhaven authorized 10 new homes from January to August, all single-family. The town filed reports for five of those eight months, covering seven homes, and the bureau estimated the rest. Fairhaven is not covered by the state's MBTA Communities zoning law.
Owners and renters
About three in four Fairhaven households own their homes, 74.4% by Census Bureau American Community Survey estimates for 2020 to 2024. The survey put the median rent at $1,118 and found that 48.9% of renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent. The town's median home was built in 1952. Zillow's rent index has no figure for Fairhaven.
Label: Reported by us, from public housing market data and records.
How we verified this
Every figure in this story comes from the public data sets linked above, read Oct. 18, 2026, and the monthly payment estimates are our own arithmetic on Redfin's median price and Freddie Mac's rates.
Corrections
No corrections to this story. If something here is wrong, tell us. Every correction is dated on the story and listed in our public log.
Sources (9)
- Redfin Data Center, city and county housing market data (updated Oct. 7, 2026)Fairhaven median sale price, sales, share sold above list, sale-to-list, days on market, new listings, homes for sale, months of supply, median asking price and price per square foot for July to September 2026 and 2025, and the rolling medians for the 12 windows ending October 2025 to September 2026; Bristol County figures for September 2026. Read Oct. 18, 2026.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey, week of Oct. 15, 202630-year fixed rate of 7.40%, 6.66% for the week of Aug. 27, 2026, and 6.27% a year earlier (Oct. 16, 2025). Read Oct. 18, 2026.
- Zillow Research data, Zillow Home Value Index, September 2026Fairhaven home value index of $505,791 and its year-over-year change. Zillow Observed Rent Index has no Fairhaven series. Read Oct. 18, 2026.
- Massachusetts Department of Revenue, Division of Local Services, average single-family tax bill, fiscal 2026 (data current as of Oct. 18, 2026)Average single-family bill of $4,374 in fiscal 2026 and $4,234 in fiscal 2025, average single-family value of $475,941. Read Oct. 18, 2026.
- Massachusetts Department of Revenue, Division of Local Services, tax rates by class, fiscal 2026Residential rate of $9.19 and commercial rate of $18.20 per $1,000. Read Oct. 18, 2026.
- FY2026 statewide average single-family tax bill, Massachusetts Department of Revenue (published Feb. 19, 2026)Statewide average single-family bill of $8,113. Read Oct. 18, 2026.
- Census Bureau Building Permits Survey, Northeast places, year to date through August 2026Estimated 10 single-family units authorized January to August 2026, including Census imputation; the town reported five of eight months, covering seven units. Read Oct. 18, 2026.
- Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, MBTA Communities compliance status sheet as of Aug. 31, 2026Fairhaven does not appear among the communities covered by the law. Read Oct. 18, 2026.
- Census Bureau American Community Survey 2020 to 2024 five-year estimates, summary fileOccupied and owner-occupied homes (owner share), median rent of $1,118, median year built of 1952 and the share of renters paying 30% or more of income on rent. Read Oct. 18, 2026.