Ball Square: a Perfect Place to Buy or Sell a Home

Ball Square is another up and coming Somerville square, thanks to the recent arrival of the new Ball Square green line T stop. Ball Square is also home to a few of my absolute favorite spots in Somerville - Kelly's diner, which is my #2 favorite breakfast place after the Neighborhood Restaurant in Union Square. Ball Square is also home to Ball Square Fine Wines, which in addition to selling wines/liquors, has an awesome selection of cheeses/meats/chocolates and various snacks. Ball Square is also great in that it's walking distance to both Davis Square and Tufts. 

What is your specific real estate need in Ball Square?

Selling a single family in Ball Square

If you own a single family in the Ball Square area of Somerville, there’s a good chance your property has seen tremendous appreciation over the last few years, thanks in large part to the new Ball Square green line T extension. I have seen this area boom over the last handful of years and buyer demand, particularly families (probably due to the close proximity to Lexington Park and the Somerville Community Path), seem to love this part of town. 

And yes, you can absolutely list your property with any agent and do little to no work and you will get a solid price and a quick sale. But I guarantee you, if you put forth a little bit of energy to maximize the true potential for your single family and market it to the right buyer (most of the time a young professional family in Ball Square, but not always), you will likely see a 3x to 10x return on the work. Below are a few items that often make sense but this will be situation dependent and in some cases will depending on how well you’ve kept up your property:

  1. Single families being sold in Ball Square really benefit from being listed in the spring, due to the close proximity to the bike path and Lexington park - when you list in the warmer months, buyers quickly realize the incredible accessibility of this part of town.

  2. If you have a backyard area, invest in making it stunning. Showing a private, backyard oasis can drive in massive amounts of interested buyers. I’ve seen so-so properties sell for outrageously high prices, due in large part to a stunning backyard.

  3. If you have smaller bedrooms, stage at least one of them as a kids room and go all out. A great stager can help transform a small office/storage zone into a dream kid’s room. And when families with small children see their kids fall in love with that space, it can have a serious emotional impact and result in more offers.

  4. Make sure your living room and kitchen area are on point. This might mean investing in some newer appliances, a fresh coat of paint, new light fixtures, and potentially other fixes. You want to ensure that these areas feel clean and turnkey so they draw in families and young professionals. Most buyers looking at single families in and around Ball Square are NOT looking to move in and do significant work in my experience.

If you have a single family in Ball Square and you’re considering a sale, let’s do a walkthrough together and I can give you a complete breakdown of all the work that needs to be done so you can maximize your return! Call me at 617-833-7457.

Selling a condo in Ball Square

Much of the Ball Square condos I see for sale tend to be of the smaller HOA association variety, most typically 2 and 3-family properties converted into condos. As a result, you want to make sure you are in the good graces of your neighbors. A lot of the heavy lifting for these sales involves me helping clients navigate sometimes tricky scenarios.

For example, a common backyard is a mess and needs cleaning up but your other two neighbors don’t want to pay for it. Or you’ve been having trouble getting in touch with another trustee about an issue with trash removal each week. Or renters are in place in one of the units and the owner is hands-off and living out of state or out of the country. These are just a few common scenarios I see, but being able to successfully navigating these challenges and making sure your neighbors will work with you and not against you is critical to proper preparation of your unit which will translate to a better presentation of the property and ultimately more interest and higher offers.

If you are thinking of selling your condo in Ball Square, let me help you navigate the process from A to Z! Call me at 617-833-7457 and let’s talk!

Selling a multi-family in Ball Square

Ball Square multi-families are a fun property type to sell. One of the main reasons is I see a lot of Philadelphia style 2-families in this part of Somerville which means unit 1 is typically all of the first floor and part of the second floor. And unit 2 is typically part of the second floor and all of the third floor.

Why is this fun for me? Well often these sort of layouts are ripe for reconfigurations of units for example you could…

  1. Add an extra full bathroom, adding additional rental income potential thereby increasing your sales price

  2. Removing a bedroom from a high bed count unit (say a 5-bed) and moving it over to a smaller bedroom count unit (say turning a 2-bed into a 3-bed)

  3. You may even be able to convert your 2-family into a 3-family in some unique scenarios

Now, I’m not saying you can or necessarily should do any of the above prior to selling your home. But understanding what options you would do if you were to hold onto the property helps us market the highest and best use to prospective buyers. And when you come up with a clear gameplan of how to increase rents in the future for your multi-family, you’re also increasing the perceived value in the eyes of your prospective buyers. 

Let me help you determine your Ball Square multi-families’ highest and best use so we can get you your highest and best return! Call me at 617-833-7457 to discuss!

Selling a development opportunity in Ball Square

I don’t see a ton of development plays in Ball Square. More typically the question that does arise here is does it make sense to condoize my 2-family or 3-family. And sometimes it can make sense to turn your Philadelphia 2-family into two larger units, gut renovate them and sell them. But you really have to be a unique person who:

  1. Has enough equity or cash on hand for a major renovation - typically many hundreds of thousands of dollars

  2. Has enough experience with construction to do the work (I can help with this, as I have my own team of contractors I regularly work with)

  3. Has enough cash reserves to wait many months with no rental income coming in

  4. Has the stomach to do work on a property where you won’t know exactly where the condo market will be many months down the road when your work is complete

So as you can, what I am describing above is a unique person with a unique set of experiences and financial situation. But if you are reading the above and saying yup, yup, yup, and yup, then this could be a route you consider. If you’d like to chat through condoizing your property in Ball Square or otherwise selling it as a development, give me a ring at 617-833-7457!

Buying a single family in Ball Square

If you are looking to purchase a single family in the Ball Square area of Somerville, expect to pay a premium! This area has gentrified tremendously over the last 5 years. I remember a time when you could buy a single family in this part of Somerville for less than $1.5M but for the most part, those days seem to be long gone. 

Why the change in prices? It’s all about the Ball Square T stop. Ever since that came into being, buyers have been targeting this area in droves. It also doesn’t hurt that you have a lot of wonderful, quiet side streets that bump up along the community path right into Davis Square. 

Expect to pay at least $1.5M for a smaller single family house (1,500 or so square feet in good condition) in this part of Somerville and if you want a good sized house with 3 to 4 bedrooms and 2,000 square feet plus in good condition, you are typically going to pay $1.9M to $2.2M as of this writing (12/18/2025). 

You should also know, not a ton of good condition single families come up each year in Ball Square…usually I can count them on one hand to give you an idea of how rare these are. So just be prepared to be patient and build in a few years of waiting for the right one for you. 

If you are considering a Ball Square single family home purchase in Somerville, give me a call at 617-833-7457!

Buying a condo in Ball Square

If you’re considering a condo purchase in Ball Square, Somerville, you’re looking at one of the more up and coming parts of Somerville, driven in large part by the newer Ball Square T stop. =

Expect to pay in the $700k to $850k for a 2-bed/1-bath condo. 3-beds typically start around $1M and go up to around $1.25M. And you’ll typically see high-end luxury 4-bed condos with north of 2,400 square feet in the $1.7M to $1.9M range. 

The ranges you see above will be impacted by the condition of the units, whether they are on nice quiet streets or busier streets, the size of the units, and amenities like parking, central A/C, laundry in-unit. 

If you are thinking of buying a condo in Ball Square and want to understand for $X what kind of condo can I afford, give me a call and we will figure it out together! My cell is 617-833-7457. 

Buying a multi-family in Ball Square

If you’re looking at purchasing a multi-family in Somerville, Ball Square is a good area to target. Now with the green line T stop in place, I have found the tenant pool tends to be strong and demand tends to be quite high. And with some patience you can get a great deal…I’ve even seen some nicely sized 3-families sell in this section of Somerville for under $1.5M - that is a very good price per a unit for a prime area in Somerville. 

Now, really large 3-families - as in 3,500 square feet or more, often times will land in the $1.75M to $2M range and most 2-families land in the $1.5M range here. But again, with patience, I typically see a handful of great buyers in Ball Square each year that provide a solid cap rate for the price. 

This area also has some larger multi-families and more Philadelphia style 2-families (meaning part of each unit is on a second floor). These homes tend to be ideal for owner-occupants who need a bit extra space for kids and/or guests. So if you are looking to be an owner occupant in a Somerville 2-family, this is one of the better neighborhoods to target. 

Whatever your multi-family buying situation is, if you are hoping to target Ball Square, give me a call and I can help you understand what to look for and what to avoid to ensure a great purchase! My cell is 617-833-7457.

Recent multi-family I helped a client buy in Ball Square:

132 Willow Ave: This was my clients first real estate investment purchase. They wanted a prime location close to the mature market of Davis Square. We found it at 132 Willow Ave - not only is the property two houses down from the Somerville bike path, it's just 3-minutes to the Davis Square red line and also comes with central A/C, laundry in-unit, an outdoor area, and off-street parking. We got this all for around $1.3M - an excellent value given the condition, layout, and location. This property has already substantially increased in value over the last few years and will continue to do so over the long haul!

Buying a development opportunity in Ball Square

Ball Square development opportunities can be tricky to find. The few that have come up in 2025 that seemed more intriguing to me were actually single families in poor shape that had been sitting for some time. With a low ball offer, there are some opportunities for renovations and sales of these Ball Square single families. A well-updated single family with nice touches can end up selling in the $1.9M to $2.2M range (as of this writing 12/18/2025), so with enough margin deals can be found.

If you are thinking of buying a development opportunity and are targeting the Ball Square area of Somerville, let me help you navigate to a clear winner! My cell is 617-833-7457.

Read more about the selling and buying services that I can provide here:

Sage's Selling Services
Sage's Buying Services

Above are samples of properties I’ve helped clients sell or buy. Read more about my past work here.

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