Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0Even on the area’s higher pay, Pittsfield costs more to live in than 75% of U.S. towns
It ranks #79 of 282 in Massachusetts for affordability. Up 1% in a year, 53% below the Massachusetts typical home.
Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the Pittsfield, MA metro area ($76K). How TownRatings grades cost of living
The grade measures what housing costs against what households in the area earn. Pittsfield’s area earns well above the typical U.S. town ($76K against $74K), but homes, rent and taxes here run higher still. Owners keep up better than renters: 23% of owners pay 30% or more of income for housing (typical U.S. town: 20%), against 53% of renters.
In dollars
- $308Ktypical home, 53% below the Massachusetts typical homeZillow, September 2026
- $1,680a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
- 95prices across the Pittsfield metro, where the U.S. is 100 (housing 73)BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
In paychecks the grade
- 3.4 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$76K, Pittsfield-area income
- 18%of area income goes to the median rent; the typical U.S. town: 18%Census 2020–24
- 53%of renters pay 30%+ of income for housing; across Massachusetts: 52%Census 2020–24
- 23%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
The short version on homes in Pittsfield
Low tax bills, but a high tax rate
The median tax bill is $4,148, under the Massachusetts median of $5,992, because homes cost less. As a share of value, though, it’s 1.61% a year, against 1.07% statewide. On the typical home, that’s about $410 a month. Property taxes ↓
Very little new building
Pittsfield permitted 95 new homes over the past 10 years, about 0.2 a year per 1,000 residents. Across Massachusetts, the pace in 2025 was 1.8. In 2025, Pittsfield permitted 12. New homes ↓
The least expensive town in its area
All three neighboring towns with a Zillow value cost more than Pittsfield. The closest is Dalton at $348K; Washington tops the list at $401K. Vs. neighbors ↓
Fewer people, more homes
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Pittsfield lost 810 residents while 96 new homes were permitted. New homes ↓
Written from the data on this page. Home values are the Zillow Home Value Index, through September 2026; sales and supply are Redfin’s for May 2026; permits are Census figures through 2025 (2025 partly estimated); incomes, rents paid, taxes and ownership come from the Census American Community Survey.
What’s behind Pittsfield’s grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, Pittsfield is more affordable than 25% of U.S. towns, #79 of 282 in Massachusetts. Property tax pulls the grade down most; rent holds it up.
Values have outpaced Massachusetts: the typical Pittsfield home is up 32.8% in five years, against 25.7% statewide (Zillow).
Up 32.8% in five years
Faster than Massachusetts (25.7%).
Show as a table
| January | Pittsfield | Massachusetts |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | $164,000 | $378,000 |
| 2018 | $168,000 | $402,000 |
| 2019 | $176,000 | $421,000 |
| 2020 | $186,000 | $433,000 |
| 2021 | $209,000 | $479,000 |
| 2022 | $238,000 | $529,000 |
| 2023 | $263,000 | $565,000 |
| 2024 | $286,000 | $609,000 |
| 2025 | $301,000 | $640,000 |
| 2026 | $306,000 | $650,000 |
| September 2026 | $308,000 | $655,000 |
A typical Pittsfield home worth $163K in October 2016 is worth about $308K today.
Zillow Home Value Index: the typical value of all homes (middle third), smoothed and seasonally adjusted, through September 2026.
A seller's market
Supply is tight — about 2.1 months of homes for sale at the current pace. Buyers should expect competition on well-priced homes.
Under ~4 months of supply favors sellers; over ~6 favors buyers.
Redfin Data Center, all residential sales, May 2026.
A typical home costs 3.4 years of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to Pittsfield’s own median, or type yours.
That’s $39K short of a typical Pittsfield home.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,680 a month here, $350 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, Pittsfield’s typical property tax (1.61% of value a year, from the Census) and insurance of about 0.35%. Mortgage insurance, HOA fees and other debts aren’t included.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,680
Renters already here pay a median of $1,134, so moving in tends to cost more than staying put.
Fair Market Rent a month, utilities included
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents by ZIP code (Pittsfield, MA HUD Metro FMR Area): the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent and renters: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
12 new homes permitted in 2025
Builders were permitted 12 new homes in Pittsfield in 2025: 6 single-family houses and 6 in buildings with two or more homes, worth about $6.6 million to build. That's 0.3 per 1,000 residents, slower than across Massachusetts (1.8). Over the past 10 years, Pittsfield has permitted 95 homes in all.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Pittsfield's population fell by 810 even though 96 new homes were permitted. Homes are holding fewer people: households are getting smaller, or more homes are used part of the year. Across Massachusetts: 3.4 new residents per new home.
Every year as a table
| Year | New homes | Single-family | 2+ per building | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (Jan–Aug) | 11 | 6 | 5 | $6.3 million |
| 2025 | 12 | 6 | 6 | $6.6 million |
| 2024 | 15 | 6 | 9 | $6.6 million |
| 2023 | 16 | 8 | 8 | $7.9 million |
| 2022 | 6 | 2 | 4 | $2.1 million |
| 2021 | 25 | 5 | 20 | $7.5 million |
| 2020 | 5 | 5 | 0 | $990,000 |
| 2019 | 5 | 5 | 0 | $990,000 |
| 2018 | 5 | 5 | 0 | $990,000 |
| 2017 | 5 | 5 | 0 | $990,000 |
| 2016 | 1 | 1 | 0 | $240,000 |
| 2015 | 6 | 6 | 0 | $1.4 million |
| 2014 | 13 | 13 | 0 | $2.9 million |
| 2013 | 9 | 9 | 0 | $2 million |
| 2012 | 10 | 10 | 0 | $1.5 million |
| 2011 | 16 | 14 | 2 | $2.6 million |
| 2010 | 26 | 12 | 14 | $3.1 million |
| 2009 | 59 | 20 | 39 | $6.3 million |
| 2008 | 63 | 20 | 43 | $5.2 million |
| 2007 | 73 | 73 | 0 | $12.9 million |
| 2006 | 88 | 88 | 0 | $15.5 million |
| 2005 | 95 | 77 | 18 | $14.3 million |
| 2004 | 46 | 46 | 0 | $8 million |
| 2003 | 44 | 44 | 0 | $7.9 million |
| 2002 | 44 | 44 | 0 | $5.6 million |
| 2001 | 38 | 38 | 0 | $4.8 million |
| 2000 | 39 | 39 | 0 | $4.6 million |
Pittsfield's permit office didn't report to the Census in 2025, so the 2025 figures are Census estimates.
Homes authorized by building permits, counted in the year the permit was issued. U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey.
Low tax bills, but a high tax rate
The median bill is $4,148, under the Massachusetts median of $5,992, because homes cost less. As a share of value it’s 1.61% a year, against 1.07% statewide.
Census American Community Survey 2020–24: the median real-estate tax bill homeowners report, and that bill ÷ the median home value. Bills include town, school and county taxes. The Census reports bills over $10,000 only as “$10,000+”.
The rest of a budget near Pittsfield
Only figures published free for the whole country, each labeled with the area it covers: the Pittsfield, MA metro area, or Massachusetts. Groceries follow the goods price level; nobody publishes them town by town.
| Cost | Here | Compared with | Area | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prices overall U.S. = 100 | 95 | MA 106 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Goods (groceries, clothing, cars…) U.S. = 100 | 97 | MA 99 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Utilities U.S. = 100 | 154 | MA 152 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Other services U.S. = 100 | 101 | MA 103 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
Price levels: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities 2024 (metro area and state). Electricity: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A.
Pittsfield vs. its neighbors
Of the 4 towns here with a Zillow value, Pittsfield has the lowest. Lanesborough has no Zillow value, so it is in the table only.
Cost next door · one source per column
| Town | Cost | Typical home Zillow, September 2026 | Median value Census 2020–24 | Tax rate bill ÷ value | 2-bed rent HUD 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pittsfield | C− | $308K | $257K | 1.61% | $1,680 |
| Dalton | C+ | $348K | $296K | 1.45% | $1,420 |
| Hancock | – | $382K | $376K | 0.27% | $1,860 |
| Lanesborough | C | — | $299K | 1.67% | $1,770 |
| Washington | – | $401K | $371K | 1.18% | $2,170 |
“—” under Cost: not graded (too little Census data, or under 1,000 residents). “—” under Zillow: Zillow publishes no value for that town, so it’s left blank rather than mixed with Census figures.
Questions about the cost of living in Pittsfield
Is Pittsfield expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, Pittsfield costs more than 75% of U.S. towns: a C− for cost of living, #79 of 282 in Massachusetts. The typical home costs 3.4 years of the median household income of the Pittsfield, MA metro area ($76K).
How much does a house cost in Pittsfield?
About $308K, Zillow’s typical value for September 2026, up 0.9% in a year. The Massachusetts typical home is $655K.
What salary do you need to live in Pittsfield?
To buy the typical home with 20% down at 6.3%, about $87,000 a year, keeping the payment (about $2,030 a month with tax and insurance) at 28% of income. To rent a two-bedroom at 30% of income, about $67,000.
How much is rent in Pittsfield?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $1,680 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $1,134 (Census 2020–24).
What are property taxes in Pittsfield?
The median bill is $4,148 a year, 1.61% of the median home value (Massachusetts: $5,992, 1.07%), from the Census 2020–24.
Are home prices in Pittsfield going up?
Barely: up 0.9% in the past year and 32.8% in five years, against 25.7% across Massachusetts (Zillow).
Neighbors talk housing
What Pittsfield buyers, sellers and renters are saying.
Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), Zillow Research, September 2026. Sales, days on market and supply: Redfin Data Center, May 2026. Income, ownership, taxes and rent: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. New homes: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey. Fair Market Rents: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The calculator is an estimate, not a loan offer. Regional price levels: BEA; electricity: EIA. How TownRatings grades cost of living.