Housing in Beacon Hill

Local Schools & Restaurants — Available Homes

Boston is a patchwork of diverse neighborhoods which have been annexed over the years. One of the neighborhoods regarded as the most desirable and expensive is Beacon Hill. Surprisingly, it is easy to get to know your neighbors here! Besides having a well-organized neighborhood association, Beacon Hill is a small, residential neighborhood. It boasts Federal-style rowhouses, narrow, gas-lit streets, decorative iron work, and brick sidewalks.

Beacon Hill is generally bounded by Beacon Street, Bowdoin Street, Cambridge Street and Storrow Drive – less than a square mile – and situated directly north of the Boston Common and the Boston Public Garden. In fact, the Massachusetts State House is at the top of the Hill overlooking Boston Common. The block bounded by Beacon, Tremont and Park Streets is included as well, as is the Boston Common itself. The level section of the neighborhood west of Charles Street, on landfill, is known locally as the “Flat of the Hill.” You might also hear of the “North Slope” and the “South Slope” sides of Beacon Hill.

Its architecture also includes the Greek Revival and Victorian periods, as well as early 20th-century colonial revival homes and tenements. The exteriors of the buildings are protected by restrictive regulations that allow no changes to any visible part of a structure, including such details as the color of the doors, without the approval of an architectural commission.

If you are over 50 and looking to meet new people or willing to be active in community life, become a member of Beacon Hill Village. It has been redefining aging in downtown Boston for two decades. It’s a member-led community of active, creative and independent adults aged 50 and older who connect with and care for one another through an array of support services, social and wellness programs, cultural and educational activities and excursions.

If you have a specific property in mind that you think you might like to buy in Beacon Hill, The City of Boston maintains a database for the City Assessor which you can access to see what value the City gives the property and what the annual taxes are. Boston does offer a residential tax break for primary residences for which you might need to apply after your purchase. Also access the City of Boston’s official website, with more information about Beacon Hill. To keep up with daily goings on you can check in online with the Beacon Hill Times, The Patch, the Boston Guardian, or, of course, the Boston Globe, and the Boston Herald.

The following chart is a visual representation of the cyclical nature of real estate and compares the ups and downs of Beacon Hill to those of the entire city of Boston. The taller the column the better it is for buyers. The shorter the column the better it is for sellers. Hence 2010 was the best time for a buyer to buy in Beacon Hill, while 2015 was the best year for sellers to sell. The graphic below is good news for buyers as it indicates a weakening seller’s market.

Area Schools

Great Schools provides ratings for most schools in the United States. Below, you can see what schools are near the address you are thinking of buying and then compare it to other neighboring schools.

Search Beacon Hill Real Estate

This next chart shows the number of sales occurring in Beacon Hill month-to-month, year-to-year since 2018 provides you a historical overview of the best times to sell – months with the greatest number of sales (spring) – and the best times to buy – months with the fewest number of sales (not spring). CAVEAT: there are usually more homes to choose from in the first half of the year.

Bookmark this page and check back anytime to see what is currently available in Beacon Hill. Unlike other search sites which include properties already under contract, this site only shows properties that are truly available.