The average home sales price in Boston is just over $800,000, but what that buys you ranges radically from neighborhood to neighborhood. In tony Back Bay, you can expect to trade square footage for a desirable address. In ever-expanding South Boston, there’s a crop of new buildings where you can get a two-bedroom condo for less than $800,000. If you head to Dorchester, your money buys a lot more space, including single-family homes with multiple bedrooms and bathrooms.

Condos in Exclusive Back Bay or South End

Homes in two of Boston’s most desirable neighborhoods, the Back Bay and the South End, almost always come with hefty price tags. If your budget tops out at $800,000, you’ll be looking at condos. In the Back Bay, giant Victorian and Edwardian houses have been converted into condos, many of which are located on tree-lined Commonwealth Avenue Mall. The South End, listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the largest urban Victorian neighborhood in the country, has also seen many of those mansions turned into condos.
Amy Carlisle, an agent with Bushari Group Real Estate, says simply that the Back Bay is “really expensive.” She notes, “For $800,000, you can get an 810-square-foot, one-bedroom, one-bathroom condo in a high-rise, with one garage space and concierge service.” And keep in mind that condo fees will run more than $700 a month, she says.

Jennifer Gelfand, residential specialist with Keller Williams Realty, Boston – Metro, says that the South End is “all about location.” Properties near the shopping and restaurants of Copley Place or the Prudential Center, and close to the Back Bay MBTA station, are particularly sought after, she says. Gelfand recently saw an 824-square-foot, one-bedroom condo for $835,000. It had an updated kitchen and bathroom, central air and two decks – but no parking.