Demo listing
$679,000
Demo Residence Three · Reading, MA
3 beds2 baths1,650 sq ftCape
Open house Sunday · Listing courtesy of [Listing brokerage] · Demo data
Living in Reading, MA
A town common, a commuter line,and woods a short walk from the front door.
Reading is a Middlesex County town of 25,518 people (2020 Census) whose housing is mostly single-family, with a large share built before 1960. It grew around a traditional New England common and keeps conservation land such as the Town Forest. Reading station on the MBTA Haverhill Line runs to Boston's North Station, and I-93 and I-95/Route 128 cross the town.
About Reading
Reading began as an inland plantation for settlers from Lynn and was incorporated in 1644. Over the next two centuries it gave up land to form its neighbors: the parish to the south became South Reading and was renamed Wakefield in 1868, and the land north of the Ipswich River became North Reading in 1853. What remains centers on the Common, where Main and Salem Streets meet, framed by the First Congregational Church, the public library and the town hall.
The railroad reached Reading in 1845, and Woburn Street shows what followed: Queen Anne and Colonial Revival houses on well-proportioned lots along a tree-lined stretch, now a historic district. Around the built-up streets, Reading keeps a web of conservation land, from the Town Forest, its largest, to Bare Meadow and the Aberjona River Headwaters Trail through the Maillet Conservation Area.
Downtown Reading has been zoned for housing above and beside its shops since November 2009, when the town adopted a Downtown Smart Growth District under the state's Chapter 40R; Town Meeting added about 21 acres to it in 2017. Projects approved under 40R include Oaktree on Haven Street, the first built in the district, with 53 units over ground-floor retail, Postmark Square, which turned the historic post office into 50 ownership units, and 55 units at 20-24 Gould Street, completed in 2021. A second 40R district, the Gateway Smart Growth District, adopted in December 2007 at the southern town line, takes in 200 of the 424 units of Reading Woods, built on a former Addison-Wesley commercial site. In November 2024 Town Meeting approved zoning under the state's MBTA Communities law covering downtown and a smaller area near Summit Towers, and the state lists Reading as compliant.
Homes in Reading
Reading's 2023 Housing Production Plan describes the housing stock as primarily single-family, at 76.7% of units, with 84.6% owner occupied. Over half of the homes were built before 1960, and about a third before 1940. The downtown area holds a number of multi-family, affordable and public housing developments.
Neighborhoods and villagesReading
Where you mightlive in Reading.
Reading Center and the Common
The civic core where Main and Salem Streets meet, with churches, the library, the town hall and a row of 19th-century houses on Harnden and Salem Streets.
Woburn Street Historic District
Two blocks of Woburn Street between Summer Street and Temple Street, with sixteen houses on well-proportioned lots, mostly Queen Anne and Colonial Revival.
Downtown
The retail and service center of town, where most of Reading's multi-family and affordable housing developments are located.
Gateway district
The southern edge of town near I-95/Route 128 and Main Street (Route 28), zoned as a 40R district in 2007; it takes in 200 of the 424 units of Reading Woods, on a former Addison-Wesley commercial site.
Getting around
Commuting from Reading
Reading station is on the MBTA Haverhill Line, which ends at Boston's North Station. I-93 and I-95/Route 128 pass through the town, and Route 28 follows the old Andover-Medford Turnpike, built in 1806 and 1807.
- Haverhill Line: Reading
Check current schedules with the MBTA; compare the trip from each address before you buy.
Schools
Public schools
Reading is served by Reading Public Schools. Review the district's profile with the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and confirm school assignment for any address with the district.
DESE district profileThings to doReading
Places to knowin Reading.
Reading Town Forest
The town's largest conservation area, with a network of trails mapped by the town.
Bare Meadow Conservation Area
Conservation land with a trail map recently updated by the Trails Committee and volunteers, alongside the Mattera Conservation Area.
Aberjona River Headwaters Trail
A trail through the Maillet Conservation Area from Lowell Street to Willow Street, with bridges and boardwalks added through a state DCR grant.
Parker Tavern
A house built in 1694 at 103 Washington Street, run as a historic house museum by the Reading Antiquarian Society.
Reading Common
A town common held in common since at least 1737, the center of the Common Historic District.
Boston and Maine Railroad Depot
The 1870 Queen Anne depot at Reading station, at Lincoln and Prescott Streets, with paneled pilasters and large knee braces under the wide overhangs of its hip roof; it was listed on the National Register in 1984.
Biller Conservation Area
Town conservation land that takes in the Lobs Pound Mill site and Marion Woods, with a trail map published by the town.
History
1644
Incorporated as a town on June 10, 1644, after residents of Lynn sought land for an inland plantation.
1853
Land granted north of the Ipswich River in 1651 became the separate town of North Reading.
1868
The South Reading parish, which had separated in 1812, was renamed Wakefield.
Home prices
The Reading housing market
| Calendar year | 2024 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single-family median sale price | $855,000 | $900,000 | +5.3% |
| Single-family sales | 203 | 187 | -7.9% |
| Condominium median sale price | $559,500 | $595,000 | +6.3% |
Source: The Warren Group, MA December 2025 Sales, Prices by Town. Geography: town of Reading. Year-to-date figures through December, so calendar years 2024 and 2025. Not live data and not a valuation of any home.
Read it for your own home
A townwide median is a starting point. Your best comparisons are recent closed sales that resemble your home in location, size, condition and style.
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Nearby guides
More guides in North of Boston
What is the median home price in Reading, MA?
According to The Warren Group's MA December 2025 Sales, Prices by Town table, the median single-family sale price in Reading for calendar year 2025 was $900,000, across 187 sales. In 2024 it was $855,000, across 203 sales.
Does Reading have commuter rail?
Yes. Reading station is on the MBTA Haverhill Line, which runs to Boston's North Station.
Which school district serves Reading?
Reading Public Schools. Review its profile with DESE.
What kinds of housing are in downtown Reading?
Downtown holds a number of Reading's multi-family, affordable and public housing developments. Since November 2009 it has been a Chapter 40R Downtown Smart Growth District, and projects there include Oaktree on Haven Street, with 53 units above shops, and Postmark Square, with 50 ownership units in the former post office, according to the town's 2023 Housing Production Plan.
What is the property tax rate in Reading, MA?
According to the Massachusetts Division of Local Services, Reading's FY2026 residential property tax rate is $10.96 per $1,000 of assessed value, and commercial, industrial and personal property pay $12.55. No residential exemption is noted in the sources used for this guide; the Assessors' Office handles personal exemptions, such as those for seniors and veterans.
Thinking about Reading?
Let's talk aboutyour move.
Buying in Reading, selling here, or comparing it with nearby towns: tell us what you are planning and we will reply by your preferred method.
406-250-7620Sources for this guide
- Town of Reading
- 2020 Census population
- MBTA commuter rail
- Massachusetts DESE district profile
- The Warren Group, 2025 sales by town
- Housing
- Property tax rates, FY2026
- Reading Center and the Common
- Woburn Street Historic District
- Reading Town Forest
- Parker Tavern
- Boston and Maine Railroad Depot
Researched by The Oberdorfer Team. Updated . Places and facts can change; check with the source before you rely on them.