The story of this market
The typical home in Franklin County, Massachusetts sells for about $386,000, or $249 per square foot.
Prices are up +5.7% from a year ago, so sellers still have some momentum. Homes take about 32 days to sell. Over the long run, values in this county have grown 105% since 2000. Last year 15 of 18 neighborhoods saw prices rise, so the story isn't the same street to street. HUD's fair market rent for a two-bedroom is $1,550 a month.
FEMA's National Risk Index rates overall hazard risk here as Relatively Low.
Price climate
Every year of price change, 2000–2025
+3.4%
2025
Each stripe is one year's median price change across the area's census tracts (FHFA repeat-sales index). Deep blue is a strong gain year, red a falling year. Best: 2004 (+14.5%). Worst: 2008 (-5.3%). Hover to read a year.
Monthly price momentum
Home values since 2015
+2.5%
MA · past 12 months
Freddie Mac House Price Index, single-family homes, monthly through 2026-08. Each line starts at 100 in January 2015, so a reading of 180 means prices are up 80% since then.
Neighborhood price trend
Long-run price trend, 2000–2025
+3.4%
2025 change
FHFA repeat-sales index, median of 18 census tracts in this county (2000 = 100). Bars are each year's median change.
Natural hazard exposure
The area's risk shape
35
Relatively Low
FEMA National Risk Index. Each spoke is a hazard ranked nationally, where 100 is the most exposed. Expected annual loss: $22,879,968.
Mortgage activity
Home lending in this county
75.3%
2018 approval rate
| Year | Applications | Loans made | Approval | Investor share | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 2527 | 1387 | 75.3% | 4.3% | $205,000 |
CFPB Home Mortgage Disclosure Act records: every mortgage application reported by lenders for homes in this county. Approval rate is approved ÷ decided (withdrawn and incomplete files excluded). Investor share and home value are the median census tract.
Franklin County, Massachusetts
Franklin County's residential real estate market remains structurally constrained by tight inventory and consistent demand from regional buyers seeking relative affordability within western Massachusetts. Median sale prices continue to appreciate moderately at approximately 5.7% year-over-year, supported by low listing counts and a swift 32 median days on market. While higher borrowing costs have modulated rapid bidding escalation, the market continues to favor sellers due to limited new construction.
No ARED distress-ledger coverage for this county yet — the foreclosure ingest rotates the national county directory, and filings appear here once the county's posted notices are read. Key-figure check: no independent anchor retained yet — first-researched cycles establish the anchor baseline this pass.
Select a city to expand its ZIP intel reports beneath · 26 cities · 31 ZIP reports
Median prices moved up 8.1% year over year.
Homes spend a median of 53 days on market with 0.3 months of supply — a fast-moving market.
9% of listings have cut prices · homes sell at 57.7% of asking — demand is holding steady.
no recorded foreclosure-ledger notices (0.0 per 10,000 residents) · unemployment 3.4% · poverty 9.8% — a stable, low-distress profile.
ACS 2024 5-year estimates. Aggregate published statistics for this county — never individual records, and never an attribute of any individual property or resident.
Deterministic aggregate of 30 researched ZIP reports of 31 — sales_count-weighted (population fallback); per point, children lacking the value or its weight are excluded. Tax rates, sentiment and context notes are tier-native and never roll.
Franklin County, Massachusetts — researched county-level history with a deterministic 1 / 3 / 5-year projection
Solid: researched ten-year history · dotted: 1 / 3 / 5-year projection extended from the historical 7.1%/yr trend — a deterministic estimate, not a published forecast or guarantee.
No researched properties in this county yet — the property base layer populates as property research runs, and each property feeds its ZIP's roll-up.
researched Sep 16
researched Sep 16
researched Sep 16
researched Sep 16
researched Oct 8
researched Sep 16
researched Sep 19
researched Sep 17
researched Sep 16
researched Sep 19
| 01054 | Leverett | $526,141 | $288 | +2.2% | 29 | 100% | 9.6% | — | 5,089 | $1,389 | researched Sep 16 |
| 01072 | Shutesbury | $535,000 | $286 | +46.1% | 35 | — | — | — | — | $1,721 | researched Sep 16 |
| 01301 | Greenfield | $349,000 | $215 | +13.5% | 82 | — | — | — | 24 | $1,109 | researched Sep 16 |
| 01302 | Greenfield | $349,000 | $215 | +13.5% | 82 | 100% | — | 1 | 8 | $2,000 | researched Sep 16 |
| 01330 | Ashfield | $402,000 | $338 | -10.6% | 65 | 98.2% | 12% | 4.5 | 18 | $1,850 | researched Oct 8 |
| 01337 | Bernardston | $390,309 | $216 | +3.2% | 23 | 96.4% | — | 7.4 | 143 | $1,333 | researched Sep 16 |
| 01338 | Buckland | $300,000 | $219 | +5.3% | 26 | 102% | — | — | 171 | $1,882 | researched Sep 19 |
| 01339 | Charlemont | $307,600 | $476 | +5.3% | 201 | — | 66.7% | — | 12 | $1,173 | researched Sep 17 |
| 01340 | Colrain | $117,375 | $231 | -38.2% | 33 | 96.8% | — | — | 9 | $1,102 | researched Sep 16 |
| 01341 | Conway | $117,375 | $165 | -38.2% | 33 | 98.5% | 12% | 4.5 | 9 | $1,821 | researched Sep 19 |
Figures are each ZIP report's own latest research — the county roll-up aggregates them sales_count-weighted (population fallback); ZIPs cycle quarterly.
Franklin County maintains significantly lower violent and property crime rates than Massachusetts and national medians. Greenfield, the county seat and largest urban center, registers the majority of localized property offenses, while the surrounding rural hill towns experience exceptionally low crime frequency.
Public education is delivered across regional multi-town school districts such as Frontier Regional, Mohawk Trail Regional, and Pioneer Valley Regional, alongside local municipal districts like Greenfield Public Schools. Academic metrics generally reflect solid graduation rates and strong community involvement, supplemented by prominent independent boarding academies including Deerfield Academy and Northfield Mount Hermon.
Severe flooding along the Connecticut, Deerfield, and Green river corridors represents the primary localized environmental hazard, historically demonstrated by severe runoff events like Tropical Storm Irene. Wildfire risk is low to moderate across vast state forest acreage, while winter nor'easters bring notable snow and freeze perils that influence regional property insurance terms.
Economic expansion is modest and focused on light precision manufacturing, regional healthcare, green energy, artisan agriculture, and cultural tourism rather than dense commercial development. Recent infrastructure investments have centered on downtown Greenfield revitalization, high-speed municipal broadband expansion across rural towns, and expanded north-south passenger rail on the Valley Flyer route.
County-level government was abolished in 1997, meaning real estate taxation is levied purely at the individual municipal town level under Massachusetts Proposition 2 1/2 restrictions (capping total levy increases at 2.5% plus new growth). Assessment formulas utilize 100% fair cash value certified by the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, with residential exemptions, senior abatements, and Chapter 61 agricultural/forestry classifications available across towns.
The economy rests primarily on healthcare, education, regional public administration, precision machinery, specialty manufacturing, and agricultural production. Baystate Health, local school districts, boarding schools, and family-owned specialty manufacturers constitute the primary local employment anchors.
Interstate 91 runs north-south through the core valley connecting the county to Northampton, Springfield, and Vermont, while Route 2 (the Mohawk Trail) serves east-west transit across the northern tier. Public transit is operated by the Franklin Regional Transit Authority (FRTA), augmented by Amtrak's Valley Flyer passenger rail terminal in downtown Greenfield.
Countywide planning and municipal support are coordinated by the Franklin Regional Council of Governments (FRCOG), which prioritizes open-space preservation, river flood resilience, and rural affordable housing initiatives.
Massachusetts does not utilize county appraisal districts; assessments are independently conducted by municipal Boards of Assessors within each town under Mass. General Laws Chapter 59, governed by triennial and annual statistical recertification by the Massachusetts Department of Revenue.
Parcels are subject to municipal tax overlays, regional vocational school districts (such as Franklin County Technical School District), and municipal fire/water districts in rural village centers rather than county-wide special utility districts.
Homeowners insurance rates remain comparatively stable relative to national trends, though properties along active flood plains and river basins experience high FEMA National Flood Insurance Program premiums and underwriting scrutiny.
- Round1 Bowling & Arcade - Holyoke4.125.1 mi
- Funcity Trampoline and Adventure Park4.127.2 mi
- Central Rock Gym - Hadley4.713.1 mi
- Pioneer Valley Indoor Karting4.611.3 mi
- FunHub Action Park4.412.5 mi
- MASS MoCA4.728 mi
- Mullins Center4.610.6 mi
- Golden Corral Buffet & Grill4.127.5 mi
- Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory4.81.5 mi
- MassMutual Center4.529.6 mi
- Berkshire East Mountain Resort4.714.7 mi
- Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory4.81.5 mi
- The Montague Bookmill4.84 mi
- Cinemark at Hampshire Mall and XD4.412.6 mi
- Bridge of Flowers4.88.2 mi
- MASS MoCA4.728 mi
- Amherst College4.312.1 mi
- Springfield Armory National Historic Site4.829.3 mi
- The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art4.615.1 mi
- Springfield Museums4.729.5 mi
- Look Memorial Park4.713.3 mi
- The Botanic Garden of Smith College4.814.7 mi
- Mohawk Trail State Forest4.617.9 mi
- Skinner State Park4.816 mi
- DAR State Forest4.710.7 mi
- Oxbow Marina4.416.6 mi
- Brunelle's Marina4.418.5 mi
- Crumpin-Fox Club : 18 Hole Golf Course Bernardston, MA4.611.3 mi
- Northampton Country Club4.613.4 mi
- Northfield Golf Club4.714.6 mi
- Country Club of Greenfield4.36.2 mi
- Atkins Farms Country Market4.715.2 mi
- Big Y4.311.9 mi
- Hampshire Mall412.5 mi
- Big Y4.413.2 mi
- Thornes Marketplace4.514.7 mi
Theme parks, venues, golf, airports, museums, water and shopping across the area from Google Maps, ranked by popularity within the radius shown.
The amenity base that shapes daily life and property demand in this county — what residents actually live with, and what the pipeline is adding.
A preserved 18th-century village museum featuring authentic colonial architecture, decorative arts, and heritage walking tours that anchor regional cultural tourism.
A former 1908 trolley bridge converted into a 400-foot continuous floral walkway across the Deerfield River, connecting Shelburne and Buckland.
Provides sweeping panoramic views of the Connecticut River Valley and farmland, featuring summit picnic pavilions and extensive multi-use hiking networks.
A prominent geological river cove offering public kayaking, seasonal camping, nature trails, and bald eagle nesting sites along the Connecticut River.
A nationally ranked 18-hole championship public golf course designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr. set in the rolling woodlands of Bernardston.
Data retrieved from U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-year County Profile and FRED tables for Franklin County, MA.
applies when — Parcels classified as forest production land under M.G.L. c. 61
Imposes a conveyance tax upon sale for non-forest use and potential roll-back taxes if disqualified; grants the municipality a right of first refusal upon conversion to residential, industrial, or commercial use.
Governed by M.G.L. Chapter 61.
Ad valorem tax calculated as (Municipal Budget / Total Assessed Value of all taxable property) = Tax Rate per $1,000 of assessed value. Assessments must be at 100% of full and fair cash (market) value.
Governed by M.G.L. Chapter 59; assessed annually by local boards of assessors.
Governance registry — every jurisdiction re-researches on a rolling 90-day cycle. Property reports compose these inherited burdens into a per-parcel ledger with conditional determinations. Informational only — not legal advice.