The New Hampshire Housing Market in 2026: What the Data Says for Agents
New Hampshire's median single-family sale price hit $580,000 in July 2026 — a record, up 5.5% year over year, at a point when several national indices were flat or falling. Every figure in this article comes from the New Hampshire Association of Realtors monthly indicators for July 2026, released 10 August 2026. If you are reading this more than a quarter later, pull the current release before you quote anything here to a client.
The statewide picture in seven numbers
| Indicator | July 2026 | Year-over-year |
|---|---|---|
| Median sales price, single family | $580,000 | +5.5% |
| Closed sales | 1,532 | +10.4% |
| New listings | 1,917 | +9.7% |
| Homes for sale | 2,992 | +15.6% |
| Months supply of inventory | 2.7 | +8.0% |
| Days on market | 23 | +9.5% |
| Percent of list price received | 100.3% | −0.2% |
Read those together rather than one at a time. Supply and demand are both rising — listings up 9.7%, closed sales up 10.4% — and prices are still setting records. The median is up roughly 36% against May 2021.
Josh Greenwald, president of the New Hampshire Association of Realtors, framed the July release around supply: "The record median sales price underscores the need for continued efforts to expand New Hampshire's housing supply."
What 2.7 months of supply and 23 days on market mean for your business
Inventory at 2,992 homes is the highest since the pandemic, and it is up more than 15% in a year. That is a genuine shift and it will show up in your listing appointments before it shows up in the price index.
But 2.7 months of supply is still well short of the five to six months usually described as balanced. The practical translation:
- Correctly priced homes still sell fast and at list. A statewide median of 23 days and 100.3% of list price is not a soft market by any definition.
- Mispriced homes now have company. With 15% more competing inventory, an overpriced listing no longer sits alone — buyers have somewhere else to go, and days on market accumulates in public.
- The 0.2 point decline in list-price ratio is the tell. It is small, but it is the first indicator that moves when negotiating leverage starts shifting. Watch it monthly.
- Listing-side skill is repricing. In 2021 anything sold. In this market the agent who brings town-level days-on-market data to the appointment and holds the line on price is measurably worth more than the one who takes the seller's number.
The state is not one market
Statewide medians hide a spread of more than $440,000 between the highest and lowest county. July 2026 county medians:
| County | Median single-family price, July 2026 | Region |
|---|---|---|
| Rockingham | $710,000 | Seacoast and southeastern NH |
| Belknap | $615,000 | Lakes Region |
| Sullivan | $425,000 | Upper Valley / western NH |
| Cheshire | $422,000 | Monadnock |
| Coös | $269,000 | North Country |
Rockingham County and the Seacoast
At $710,000, Rockingham is the most expensive county in the state and the one where the commission math is most favourable — a single side at 2.5% is roughly $17,750 of gross commission income, against about $14,500 at the statewide median. Portsmouth, Exeter, Stratham and Hampton draw both Boston-adjacent buyers and second-home money, and the inventory constraint is tighter than the statewide figure because a large share of the housing stock is historic and effectively unreplaceable.
The competitive reality is that this is also the most heavily worked market in New Hampshire. Differentiation on the Seacoast comes from town-level specialisation and from relocation fluency, not from broad coverage.
Belknap County and the Lakes Region
Belknap's July median of $615,000 was up around 33% year over year — the sharpest county-level move in the state and one worth understanding before you quote it. Lakes Region medians are volatile because the county's transaction count is small and waterfront sales swing the middle of the distribution. A handful of Winnipesaukee closings in a month can move the county median by six figures.
The lesson for agents is to price waterfront off waterfront comparables and shorefront frontage rather than off county medians, and to expect appraisal friction. Do not carry a county median into a lakefront listing appointment.
Coös County and the North Country
At $269,000, Coös is a different business — lower commission per side, longer marketing times, thinner comparable data, and buyers who are frequently paying cash or bringing rehab plans. It is also the only part of the state where the affordability gap below is not the dominant constraint, which makes it structurally interesting for agents willing to cover distance.
Southern New Hampshire and the tax question
Southern New Hampshire's pull has always been proximity to Boston's job market combined with New Hampshire's tax structure, and the tax side got stronger recently. New Hampshire has no tax on wage income, and the interest and dividends tax — the last remaining personal income tax — was repealed effective 1 January 2025 per the New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration. There is also no general sales tax.
That is a concrete, verifiable talking point for a relocating buyer comparing Nashua against a Massachusetts suburb, and it is worth being precise about rather than gesturing at "no income tax." Property taxes in New Hampshire are correspondingly high, and a buyer who is not shown the full picture will find it themselves at closing.
The affordability gap is the constraint on your buyer-side business
The most consequential number in the July release is not the price. It is that the state's median household income is roughly 47% below what is required to qualify for the median New Hampshire home.
For an agent, that is not an abstraction. It means:
- A larger share of your buyer inquiries will not be able to transact this year, at any level of effort.
- Pre-qualification has to move to the front of the buyer consultation, not after the third showing.
- Buyer-side time per closing is rising, which changes the economics of how many buyers you can carry at once.
- Out-of-state equity buyers, cash buyers and downsizers are a disproportionate share of who actually closes.
Agents who build a written buyer qualification process — and use it — will out-earn agents doing the same volume of showings. The buyer consultation and pre-qualification scripts we use are in the Bean Group playbooks.
Four things to watch through the rest of 2026
- Whether inventory growth outpaces sales growth. Right now it is close — 15.6% versus 10.4%. If listings continue to build faster than closings for two or three consecutive months, list-price ratio and days on market will move before the median does.
- Rate sensitivity. Buying power in this market is set at the closing table, not the listing table. Track how quickly pending sales respond to rate moves in your specific towns.
- New construction absorption. Supply expansion is the stated policy priority; where it lands, it lands unevenly by town.
- Seasonal versus year-round conversion in the Lakes Region. Second homes becoming primary residences changes the buyer profile, the financing and the inspection expectations.
Frequently asked questions about the New Hampshire housing market
What is the median home price in New Hampshire right now?
$580,000 for a single-family home in July 2026, a record and up 5.5% year over year, per the New Hampshire Association of Realtors. County medians ranged from $269,000 in Coös to $710,000 in Rockingham.
Is New Hampshire still a seller's market in 2026?
Yes, though less lopsidedly than in recent years. Months supply is 2.7 against roughly five to six for a balanced market, homes sold at 100.3% of list, and the median time on market was 23 days. Inventory is up more than 15% year over year, which is giving buyers more choice than they have had since the pandemic.
Which New Hampshire county has the highest home prices?
Rockingham County, at a $710,000 median in July 2026 — the Seacoast and southeastern corner of the state. Coös County in the North Country is the lowest at $269,000.
Does New Hampshire have an income tax?
No. New Hampshire does not tax wage income, and the interest and dividends tax was repealed effective 1 January 2025 according to the New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration. There is no general sales tax either. Property tax rates are comparatively high, which is the trade-off buyers should be shown up front.
How much does a New Hampshire agent earn per transaction?
At the July 2026 statewide median of $580,000, a 2.5% side is roughly $14,500 in gross commission income before splits, cap contribution and fees. In Rockingham County the same side is closer to $17,750. Commission rates are negotiable and not set by any association.
Why did Lakes Region prices jump so sharply?
Belknap County's median rose roughly 33% year over year, but small transaction counts and a handful of high-value waterfront closings can move a county median substantially in a single month. Price waterfront off waterfront comparables rather than off county-level medians.
Working this market from a New Hampshire base
The agents doing best in New Hampshire right now are narrow rather than broad: one or two towns, a documented pricing process, and a buyer qualification step that happens before the showings. That is a local skills problem more than a brokerage problem, but the brokerage decides how much of your gross commission you keep while you solve it — the partnership plans page covers how the $4,000 team cap works against eXp's standard $16,000.
Bean Group's Culture Center in Portsmouth is where the market reviews, deal debriefs and listing-presentation practice happen in person. If you are an established agent weighing a move and want to see how the numbers work against your own production, start here.
On the brokerage figures: eXp's cap and fee terms change from time to time. Confirm the current version at exptoolkit.com/revenueshare before comparing it against what you pay now.