Malden, MA — Momentum Score, Home Values & Best-For

All states·Massachusetts·Malden

Middlesex County · Boston-Cambridge-Newton · population 66,693

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Malden, MA
Image: Wikipedia · Malden, Massachusetts
OverviewCost of livingMoving guide
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61
Stable
Momentum score · 0–100

Where Malden stands

At or near all-time high.

Median home $688,748
1-year +1.0%
5-yr CAGR +4.0%
vs 5-yr peak -0.2%
Population +0.2%/yr

Home value trajectory · last 10 years

Zillow ZHVI · monthly
peak 2026-03$689k$352k$474k$596k$718k201620182020202220242026

Lifestyle scores

🚶
Walkability
78/100
Very walkable
Estimated from population density. Higher = denser, more amenities within walking distance.
🚉
Public transit
22/100
Transit limited
Curated list of major US transit systems + population-based estimate. Higher = real subway/rail/bus options.
💻
Remote work fit
67/100
Strong remote-work fit
Composite of city size, housing cost, state tax structure, and region's remote-work track record.

Scores are heuristic estimates from population density, state, and known transit/walkable cities. Not based on a paid Walk Score / Transit Score API — see methodology for the formula.

Rent trajectory · last 5 years

Zillow ZORI · monthly
$2,668/mo$1,886$2,386$2,886202220242026

Home value vs rent · indexed to 100

Both rebased at first month of ZORI data (~2015)
Home valueRent122133100120140202220242026

Rent vs buy

Price-to-rent ratio: 21.5
Lean rent

At a 21.5 price-to-rent ratio, the math is starting to lean toward renting in Malden. Owner-occupier ROI requires longer holds and the assumption that prices keep appreciating roughly at the rate of rent.

How the momentum score breaks down

methodology →
Home YoY
55 · w22%
Home 5-yr CAGR
59 · w22%
Distance from peak
89 · w18%
Population growth
48 · w16%
Rent YoY
42 · w12%
Home 10-yr CAGR
69 · w10%
Long thesis

Malden has held up across the cycle: home values at $688,748 with +4.0% 5-year CAGR. The bull case is structural — population, location, employer base — and holds even if next year's print is soft.

Short thesis

Malden's bear case is the boring one: the cycle is real and any market that's run hard can stall. Watch for slowing population growth, rising days-on-market, or builder discounts as the early warning signals.

About Malden

Malden is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, with an estimated population of 66,693. It anchors the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area. The median home value in Malden is $688,748 as of 2026-04, up 1.0% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +4.0% annual growth, with prices at or near the 5-year peak. Rents in Malden average $2,668 per month, roughly flat year-over-year (-0.5%). The composite momentum score is 61 of 100 (Stable). Conditions are neither hot nor cold, so the local fit matters more than market timing.

▲ Bull case

●Held the highs: currently -0.2% from the 5-year peak — this market refused to give back gains.
○The data is the data: Malden has at least 5 years of Zillow tracking, full Census identification, and is included in the 2-criteria momentum score on this page.

▼ Bear case

○Local nuance: city-level data smooths over neighborhood differences. School zones, HOA rules, and street-level character matter — visit before deciding.

About Malden (Wikipedia)

Malden is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. At the time of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 66,263 people.

Source: Wikipedia · this summary is contributed and licensed under CC-BY-SA.

City facts

Area5.08 sq mi
Elevation13 ft
Settled1640
Density13136.99/sq mi

Extracted from the Wikipedia infobox. Values may be slightly out of date relative to the latest sources.

Playbook

Buyer

Lifestyle fit matters more than market timing in a Stable market. Take your time on the home and neighborhood; the macro trend isn't urgent. Negotiate normally.

Seller

Price competitively from day one or risk a 60+ day listing. Staging, photography, and presentation matter more in Stable markets than in Hot ones.

Investor

Stable cap rates, no big appreciation story to lean on. Underwrite this as a pure cash-flow play — the math has to work on rent alone.

Local safety & alerts

No active National Weather Service alerts for Middlesex County right now.

NWS active alerts (MA)Massachusetts Emergency ManagementHow to prepare (NWS)

Public-safety links are official .gov sources, not curated by us. Middlesex County routes NWS alerts; check the state EM portal for non-weather emergencies.

Neighborhoods of Malden

8 tracked · ranked by median home value
1West End$779,367+2.5%
2Edgeworth$715,307+3.6%
3Ferryway$703,812-0.6%
4Forestdale$695,698+0.2%
5Maplewood$686,128+1.5%
6Linden$684,550+0.1%
7Faulkner$581,288-0.0%
8Bellrock$522,862+1.8%

Cities like Malden

Waltham, MA63 · RisingPeabody, MA61 · StableMedford, MA63 · RisingQuincy, MA63 · Rising

Run the numbers for Malden

ToolCan I afford Malden?Income → city shortlistToolROI on a Malden rentalCap rate, cash-on-cash, DSCRToolCompare Malden to anywhereSide-by-side up to 3 citiesToolMalden cost-of-livingEquivalent income elsewhere

Sources: Zillow ZHVI (home values), Zillow ZORI (rents), US Census ACS + place population. Updated when source agencies publish revisions.

Climate & natural-disaster risk

Winter (Jan)
35° / 21°
avg high / low
Summer (Jul)
81° / 64°
avg high / low
Sunny days/yr
200
~55% of year
Annual precip
48″ rain
43″ snow
Disaster risk (1=very low, 5=very high)
Hurricane
Moderate
Tornado
Low
Wildfire
Very low
Earthquake
Very low
Flood
Moderate

State-level averages from NOAA Climate Normals (1991-2020) and FEMA National Risk Index. City-level conditions can vary significantly within a state.

Local sports teams

Major professional teams the Boston-Cambridge-Newton area cheers for. Detailed stats, schedules, and player pages on intherafters.com.

Current weather

Loading current conditions…

7-day forecast on weather.gov →

Find rentals & listings

Open current Malden listings on the major real-estate sites.

Links open the live search on the destination site — results are always current.

Local news & community

Updated 2026-05-21 from Google News + Reddit RSS. Headlines link to original sources.

Local economy & environment

Humidity
70%
Humid climate
Median household income
$96,500
Massachusetts state median
Top industries (state-level)
TechBiotechEducation/Healthcare

Humidity is annual average relative humidity (NOAA). Income is Census ACS 5-year estimate. Industries are largest employment sectors statewide (BLS); the local mix in a given city may vary.

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