Published October 6, 2026 in Market Update

Newburyport still moves fast, even with a little more choice

By Vladimir Babic

Real estate, Newburyport

Here is the one thing that matters most right now: Newburyport has a little more inventory than it did a year ago, but well-priced homes are still moving fast. That is the short version. The numbers tell you exactly where things stand as of October 6, 2026.

Supply is up a little, but still very tight

Realtor.com reported that active listings nationally grew to 1.16 million homes. Newburyport felt a version of that. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 61 homes for sale in ZIP 01950 during the three months ending July 31, 2026. That is up 5.2% from the same months in 2025. New listings rose too, up 14.6% to 110 for the period. More sellers came to market. That part is real.

But 2.3 months of supply is still a seller's market by most measures. The Real Estate Data Aggregator shows that figure barely moved, up just 0.1 months from a year before. More choice does not mean easy pickings.

Homes are still going fast

The Real Estate Data Aggregator tracked 57.3% of homes in ZIP 01950 going under contract within two weeks of listing, for the three months ending July 31, 2026. That is down 4 points from a year ago, so not every home flew off the shelf. But more than half still did. The median days on market was 20 days, just one day longer than the same period in 2025.

Buyers are still paying over asking

The Real Estate Data Aggregator put the average sale-to-list ratio at 101.1% for the three months ending July 31, 2026. That is up 1.1 points from a year before. And 45% of homes sold above list price, up 8 points year over year. That tells you competition did not disappear. It just eased slightly.

The median price dipped a little

The Real Estate Data Aggregator put the median sale price in ZIP 01950 at $947,000 for the three months ending July 31, 2026. That is down 4.1% from the same period in 2025. A small dip, and worth noting honestly. The Federal Housing Finance Agency reported that U.S. house prices rose 2.6% from July 2025 to July 2026, so Newburyport moved against the national grain this period. One data point, not a trend, but it is what the numbers say.

What about mortgage rates?

Freddie Mac reported the 30-year fixed rate averaged 7.28% as of October 1, 2026. The 15-year fixed averaged 6.60%. Realtor.com noted rates topped 7% for the first time since January 2025. Higher rates slow some buyers. That likely explains some of the softness in pending sales, which the Real Estate Data Aggregator counted at 75 for the period, down 6.3% from a year ago.

The full picture for ZIP 01950

One more thing. ZIP 01950 covers a lot of ground. One street can read very differently from the whole ZIP code. A home on a quiet stretch near the water, or one backing up to acreage outside the center, can follow its own rhythm. The numbers above are the starting point, not the whole story. If you want to know what they mean for your specific address, I can tell you. Mention KOALA-22 when you text and I will know you came from this post.