dailyloe.com – In early 2026, housing prices in Grafton County are still on the rise, according to a March report by the New Hampshire Association of Realtors. The median price for a single-family home in New Hampshire hit $530,000, reflecting a one percent increase since the beginning of the year. This marks the smallest annual increase since 2023.
First-quarter data indicates that prices are trending upward overall, having increased by 3.9% since March 2025. In Grafton County, the median sales price reached $490,000 in March 2026, a significant 15.6% increase from March 2025. Year-to-date figures also show a 6.7% increase.
Data from New Hampshire Realtors suggests that while month-to-month growth may be slowing, the broader trend remains upward. In response to rising prices, the Hanover Town Council passed three zoning amendments last year aimed at encouraging denser housing.
This year, three additional amendments are on the ballot, with two aimed at easing zoning restrictions and one intended to strengthen them. Economics professor William Fischel noted that Hanover’s housing trends are influenced by long-standing structural constraints on housing supply.
Fischel explained that local zoning laws in New England have historically limited land available for development. He mentioned that pressure from Concord has encouraged localities to relax some of these laws to promote housing construction.
“The backlog is large, and it is difficult to build out of conditions that have been decades in the making,” Fischel said. At the state level, data shows a persistent imbalance between supply and demand.
Although inventory has increased slightly, with about 1,465 single-family homes on the market in March, this represents a 13.2% increase from the previous year. However, overall supply remains historically low, according to the New Hampshire Realtors report.
Dave Cummings, vice president of New Hampshire Realtors, cautioned that short-term fluctuations at the county level should be interpreted carefully. He noted that Grafton County data can be volatile and may not indicate a clear trend.
Cummings stated that inventory levels remain significantly below those of a balanced market, which occurs when the supply of homes for sale roughly equals demand.
