The Wall Street Journal put out a "cheat sheet" on the ups and downs of local real estate markets in the US. The Boston area made it to their list of "insider tips" about markets that are holding their own. Though it's no secret to us that Cambridge (and Boston, too) have some of the most sought after real estate in the country, it's always nice when the business world's newspaper of record gives us our due.
And there's some good advice too:
For today's buyers, this means that shopping for housing bargains is increasingly complicated. The best deals may be where prices have slid the most, but such areas could easily fall a good bit more before hitting bottom. Meanwhile, you'll get few bargains if you buy a home in San Francisco or Manhattan or downtown Boston.
As for our area itself, a Boston brokers sums up the situation quite well:
No one is taking prices higher these days just to see if they can get it, like they used to. But you have to come with realistic expectations. This is a highly desirable area, and you're not going to find a steal.
If you want to read the details about Boston, New York, Chicago, L.A or San Francisco, you can find here