Boston condo market achieves record highs

The Boston condo market achieved record highs in 2015, with some neighborhoods seeing nearly a 10 percent increase from the previous year’s prices.

The rising condo prices are increasing at a rate greater than the overall housing availability in the region, the Boston Globereported, saying that the demand is driven by empty nesters looking to live in the city and international buyers

Downtown Boston led the condo price increases with a 24 percent gain, pushing the median price to $974,000 toward the end of last year, Boston.com reported in a related article, adding that Dorchester and East Boston also saw large increases of 17 percent and 14 percent, respectively.

“It’s almost as though we’re approaching Manhattan prices,” Debra Taylor Blair, president of real estate information firm LINK, said to the Globe. “Demand for urban living is high.”

The South End, Brighton, East Boston and Union Square are all seeing new condo projects being developed, with many targeting young professionals seeking upgraded amenities or larger space in the city, according to the Globe report.

“We see a lot of people moving up,” said Sue Hawkes with The Collaborative Companies, which helps market and sell high-end condos, to the Globe. “Not multimillion-dollar buyers, but people who bought a condo five or six years ago and now want something more.”