Real estate · County · Massachusetts
Real estate businesses in Suffolk County, MA
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for real estate businesses in Suffolk County, MA, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 32 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #2,008 of 2,229 scored counties
#14 of 14 scored counties in Massachusetts
- Listings
- 1,744
- 69 chain locations (4%)
- Official establishments
- 1,153
- +24.5% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $6.5B
- On rent and homeowner costs · $19,746 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 86
- 14% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 53.3
- 38% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 791,891
- +0.1% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in Suffolk County
The site report maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Suffolk County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
The Groundwork market score for real estate businesses in Suffolk County is 32 (lower middle), #2,008 of 2,229 scored counties and #14 of 14 scored counties in Massachusetts. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
At $19,746 per household (19% above the U.S. average), households in Suffolk County spend about $6.5B a year on rent and homeowner costs. Housing spending per office is 14% below the U.S. figure. The spending figure is all rent and homeowner costs, a measure of housing demand, not money real estate businesses take in.
Suffolk County has 1,744 real estate businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 69 of them (4%) are chain locations, against 6% across the U.S. That is 53.3 per 10,000 households, 38% above the U.S. rate of 38.5.
Official counts show 1,153 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Suffolk County in 2023, up 24.5% from 2019. That is one for every 284 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 17 SBA-backed loans worth $3.1M have gone to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Suffolk County. Population estimates show Suffolk County grew 0.1% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Suffolk County compares
The same measures for Massachusetts and the whole U.S. Housing spending per listing divides all rent and homeowner costs by the listings counted: a measure of housing demand for each business, not money any of them take in, so it is shown against the U.S. (100) only. Households per establishment divides households by the official count.
| Measure | Suffolk County | Massachusetts | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 53.3 | 38.6 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 86 | 122 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 284 | 500 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +24.5% | +11.8% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.1% | +2.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $19,746 | $20,433 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $95,631 | $103,960 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 32 | 70 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 926 → 1,153+24.5% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 11,220
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.3B
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 4,139Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1,74469 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 1,491The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 17
- Amount
- $3.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Suffolk County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in Suffolk County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 791,891+0.1% since 2020
- Households
- 327,167
- Median age
- 36.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 36%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.0
- Land area
- 58 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 13,478
- Median household income
- $95,631+37.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $139,221
- Median home value
- $705,800
- Jobs located here
- 748,596
- Daytime population
- 1,129,553Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Suffolk County?
These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the real estate businesses on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Suffolk County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardReal estate across Massachusetts
Every Massachusetts market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Massachusetts for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in Massachusetts, with Suffolk County marked.
Top counties in Massachusetts
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Franklin County, MA | 77 | 44 | 13.9 | 288 | −0.3% | #71 of 2,229 |
| 2Hampshire County, MA | 74 | 161 | 25.9 | 167 | +10.4% | #134 of 2,229 |
| 3Worcester County, MA | 63 | 924 | 27.5 | 164 | +3.7% | #469 of 2,229 |
| 4Bristol County, MA | 58 | 694 | 29.7 | 145 | +2.9% | #683 of 2,229 |
| 5Plymouth County, MA | 54 | 814 | 40.1 | 121 | +3.5% | #883 of 2,229 |
| 6Hampden County, MA | 53 | 493 | 26.7 | 150 | +0.2% | #928 of 2,229 |
| 7Middlesex County, MA | 52 | 2,533 | 39.9 | 130 | +2.8% | #997 of 2,229 |
| 8Essex County, MA | 52 | 1,141 | 36.4 | 128 | +2.3% | #999 of 2,229 |
| 9Berkshire County, MA | 51 | 157 | 27.3 | 152 | −1.2% | #1,039 of 2,229 |
| 10Norfolk County, MA | 45 | 1,304 | 46.0 | 113 | +2.2% | #1,353 of 2,229 |
| 14Suffolk County, MA | 32 | 1,744 | 53.3 | 86 | +0.1% | #2,008 of 2,229 |
Other business types in Suffolk County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many real estate businesses are in Suffolk County, MA?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 1,744 real estate businesses in Suffolk County. 69 of them (4%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 1,153 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023, up 24.5% from 2019. Official counts also show 4,139 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Suffolk County, MA spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $6.5B a year, or $19,746 per household. That is 19% above the U.S. average (an index of 119, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 1,744 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 14% below the U.S. figure. That figure is all rent and homeowner costs, used as a measure of housing demand; it is not money real estate businesses take in. It is estimated from the incomes of the 327,167 households in Suffolk County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Suffolk County, MA compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
Suffolk County has 53.3 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 38% above the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 86, where 100 is the U.S. At the U.S. ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Suffolk County would have about 1,491, against 1,744 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 284 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. The official count rose 24.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +15.8% for the U.S.
How fast is Suffolk County, MA growing?
Population estimates put Suffolk County at 791,891 people in 2025, up 0.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 327,167 households. Median household income in Suffolk County is $95,631, 18% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 37.3%, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Suffolk County scores 32 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #2,008 of 2,229 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Suffolk County. It maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for real estate businesses · All 56 business types in Suffolk County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Suffolk County?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of Suffolk County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.