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

This is an up and coming Somerville square thanks to the recent arrival of a new green line T stop - the Vernon/Lowell T stop, which is also along the Somerville Community Path, which is approximately 3.2 miles and runs from Alewife Linear Park in Cambridge all the way to East Cambridge by the Lechmere green line T stop (it's a mixture of both Cambridge/Somerville throughout the path). Magoun Square also has CVS as well as Daddy Jones, in excellent Greek restaurant/bar with a cool outdoor patio in the warmer months. 

What is your specific real estate need in Magoun Square?


Selling a single family in Magoun Square

In my experience, much of the single family housing stock in Magoun Square, Somerville tends to skew smaller - as in 1,000 to 1,500 square feet smaller. And I’ve learned from experience that these smaller single families often have a WIDE range of where they land in terms of sold price.

So it is absolutely critical that you properly prepare AND stage the home. Small spaces must be staged in my opinion - if you don’t do that you are guaranteed to live money on the table. Great stagers can take small spaces that feel unusable and demonstrate to prospective buyers the true potential of the space. 

I work carefully, first as a mini-GC in updating your property at a relatively low cost and then working with my stager to ensure we show off the truth potential of your property. When we do these items correctly, I have found we are often seeing returns of 3x, 5x, and even 10x on what we put into the property…truly a no-brainer!

If you are thinking of selling your single family home in Magoun Square, give me a call to discuss at 617-833-7457!

Selling a condo in Magoun Square

There is a wide range of condo types in the Magoun Square area of Somerville - from older 1960s buildings with investment grade finishes often landing in the $600,000 range up to luxury 4-bed condos in converted 2-families selling in the $1.3M+ range. 

In general, I find Magoun Square condos in Somerville really need to be properly marketed to the correct buyer type. For example, a 2-bed/1-bath condo in a 1960s or 1970s building that is likely to go for $600k or so is much more likely to either be a first-time investor or first-time home buyer on a budget with plans to ultimately turn their unit into an investment in the future. With that information - the time of preparation you need to make to your unit to attract those buyers is going to be very different, compared to a 4-bed/3-bath, two floor, 2,400 square ft luxury condo on the bike path. Understanding who the buyer is and what they value will dictate the entire marketing plan!

Whatever Magoun Square condo you are thinking of selling, give me a call and I can help work through how best to approach the sale! My cell is 617-833-7457.

Selling a multi-family in Magoun Square

If you own a multi-family close to Magoun Square, Somerville and you’ve owned that property for at least 5 years, there is a high chance you are going to see an excellent return. And if you’ve owned that property for 10+ years it is very likely your property has doubled or potentially even more.

Why? Mainly because the new green line T stop located at Vernon St and Lowell St went into place a few years ago. And with it, young professional renters commuting to downtown Boston came to the Magoun Square area of Somerville in droves. The result has been some serious increases in rents which translates to much higher sales prices for multi-family homes.

So then the key becomes - what have you done or what do you plan to do to show a path forward to maximizing rents for your property. At the end of the day, higher rent potential for your property means the highest sold price for your property. The one exception is if you have a property that could be an owner-occupied multi-family - in that case, it’s demonstrating how a unit is or could easily become a true “owners unit”, meaning a unit that often times can accommodate a young professional couple with kids. And then another unit or multiple other units, that will offset the mortgage in a way where there is serious value to buying a multi-family and occupying it as opposed to just buying a really nice 4 bed condo or single family.

If you have a multi-family in Magoun Square that you’re considering selling, let me help you properly position your property to maximize your sale price! Just give me a ring at 617-833-7457.

Selling a development opportunity in Magoun Square

Magoun Square is one of those areas where condo flips can work, but if you have a property on your hands in this part of Somerville and you aren’t sure if it’s worth considering selling to a developer, here are a few indications that it may be worth at least doing more homework:

  1. Your property is in total disrepair. Meaning the plumbing doesn’t work. The heating doesn’t work. The interior may look like a horror movie set. If you check this box, almost certainly you should consider selling your Magoun Square property as a development opportunity.

  2. You’re on a large lot. At 5,000 square feet, it’s worth considering and at 7,500 square feet, there is a high chance you could sell to a developer for a condo flip. There is a particular process I like to go through with an architect to ensure we secure the highest sales price from a developer - just ping me and I can walk you through it!

  3. You have a lot of livable square footage but a really awkward layout. Let’s say you have a 4,000 square foot single family or multi-family home. But a lot of the 7 “bedrooms” look like space for a mouse’s office. If your home is in this bucket, there’s a good chance a developer would be interested in gutting the entire home and reworking the space to make it appeal to the modern buyer pool.

If you have any of the above scenarios going on with your Magoun Square, Somerville property OR some other scenario that you believe warrants a closer look, give me a call! My cell is 617-833-7457.

Buying a Single Family in Magoun Square

For whatever reason, many of the single families in and around Magoun Square tend to lean on the smaller side. Occasionally you’ll see a single family at or above 2,000 square feet, but many of them land in the 1,000 to 1,500 square foot range. So if you are good with a smaller Somerville single family, Magoun Square is a good place to target.

Most single families close to Magoun Square in 2025 ended up selling for between $900k and $1M. That’s because they were either very small as I mentioned above OR they are total gut renovations and the buyer is likely to be a pure developer or owner occupant who wants to make a home their own. So if you are a developer looking for a flip OR an owner occupant OK with a small home and looking to make it completely your own, Magoun Square is an excellent neighborhood to target in Somerville.

If you are thinking of buying a single family in Magoun Square or perhaps elsewhere in Somerville, give me a ring at 617-833-7457!

Buying a Condo in Magoun Square

If you’re a Somerville condo buyer and you’re looking on a budget OR if you are looking for a good bang for your buck, the Magoun Square area of Somerville is a great place to target. Let’s go over some of the typical price bands I see in Magoun Square for condo buyers.

First, you have your first time home buyers and investors looking for a small studio. Typically these land between 350 and 400 square feet. So we are talking space for just for one person. If you are patient, a few of these pop up each year in the Magoun Square area of Somerville and they typically land between $300k and $400k price point. 

Next up you have your more investor grade and dated 2-bed units, these typically start in the mid $400s at the Broadmoor Condos located at 474 Broadway, a 33-unit 1965 building and go up to mid $600s. At this price point you typically are looking at square footage between 750 to 900 square feet of living area in an older building or a unit that needs some work. Occasionally you’ll find a nice 1-bed or 1-bed plus office in this price point as well.

After this range, I typically see nicer 2-beds in the low $700s up to $900k range. Here you’ll start seeing more 2 bed 2 bath units that are updated with nicer kitchens and bathrooms and more owner-occupant grade. These units are also more often in 2 or 3-families that were condo-converted, as opposed to larger and older buildings from the 60s and 70s around Magoun Square. 

The final range in my mind starts at $900k and goes up to the mid $1.4M range. These are often 3-bed or 4-bed units and as you go up in price you start seeing very much luxury condos with nice finishes throughout. Many of these units on the higher end range are over multiple levels and could be 1,700 to 2,200+ square feet of living area with high-end kitchen, bathrooms, and massive living room areas. 

I really like Magoun Square, especially now that the green line T stop is in place. And it has a nice variety of condos so whether you are looking for a studio at $400k or a well-priced 2-bed/2-bath at $800k OR you want a large townhouse at a good (for Somerville at least!) price per a square foot. If you are looking at condos in the Magoun Square area of Somerville, give me a ring at 617-833-7457!

Recent condo I helped a client buy in Magoun Square:

94 Bartlett St, U:1: My client was a first time home buyer looking for a 2-bed condo in Somerville, close to a T stop, in decent shape, for around $600k. This is NOT an easy task, but with a lot of searching and patience we found this awesome condo, which is just minutes to the Vernon/Lowell green line T stop. This property is a true 2-bedroom condo in Somerville and was already in good condition. Great buy for an owner occupant and this property has definitely gone up significantly in value since it was purchased!

Buying a Multi-Family in Magoun Square

If you’re looking for a solid value multi-family buy, Magoun Square is one of my favorite places to target in all of Somerville. You’ll see a few price bands in this part of Somerville in my experience:

At the absolute low-end are typically two or three family properties that have fallen into total disrepair. These units almost always sell to developers and typically go for between $700k to $900k in this part of Somerville, depending on the livable square footage and lot size.

Next up, are entry 2-families in the Magoun Square market. These typically go in the $1M to $1.25M range, depending on how big they are (they typically range 2k to 2.5k square ft at this price point) as well as the condition. Some 2-families for example will be 2,500 square feet but only sell around $1M because they need a lot of work, while others could be around 2,000 square feet but in relatively good condition and sell around $1M too. 

The final price band for multi-families around Magoun Square is typically around $1.3M to $1.6M. Here you’ll start seeing 3-families and more square footage - usually 2,700 to 3,300 square feet for most multis at this price point. You’ll also start to see nice “owner occupant quality” 2-families in this range, with updated kitchens and/or bathrooms that are more turnkey. 

If you are thinking of buying a multi-family in Magoun Square but aren’t quite sure what to look for, give me a call and I will break it all down for you! My cell is 617-833-7457!

Recent multi-families I’ve helped clients buy in Magoun Square:

13 Princeton St: My client was looking to spend under $1.1M for a 2-family with great long term potential in Somerville. We stumbled on this 2-family, which is on a quiet street and less than a full city block to the Vernon/Lowell T stop and bike path. The property was in good condition and we are currently in the process of making updates to both units to maximize rental values for both units over the long term. This will be an excellent long term buy and hold investment.

11 Robinson St: My client was looking for a property that could cash flow based on his down payment right out of the gate. This is not an easy task in Somerville, but this property made it possible. We've been consistently renting both units for a handful of years now and they tend to have excellent renters in place in a matter of weeks. It doesn't hurt that both units are fully updated which makes management of this property low-stress. This was a great turn-key buy and hold investment, just a few short blocks away from the Vernon/Lowell green line T-stop.

Buying a development opportunity in Magoun Square

If you are looking to buy a multi-family development in Magoun Square, you are in luck - I often stumble across a handful of opportunities each year in this section of Somerville.

Usually they come in a few different varieties:

The first, is a 2-family that is totally unlivable. I have seen multiple 2-families that are totally unlivable in the Magoun Square section of Somerville and they often end up landing in the $700k to $950k range, depending on the size of the property and lot size. These tend to make for very solid condo flip opportunities.

There are also some sections of Magoun Square that are zoning districts that allow for more units by right. This doesn’t mean you won’t have a long and likely painful process…you likely will, but if you have the experience and pain tolerance, there are occasionally opportunities for significant upside in this section of Magoun Square.

If you are looking to buy a development opportunity in Magoun Square, give me a call and I can keep you on my radar. My cell is 617-833-7457!

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

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

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