Is Cape Cod a Buyer’s or Seller’s Market? It Depends on the Price.

By Sarah Keith, Broker Associate | Cape Cod Bliss | eXp Realty

Companion to The Bliss Luxury Market Report | August 2026

A buyer looking for a $1.4 million Cape home and a buyer considering a $5 million property can read the same market headline and come away with very different expectations. The latest numbers suggest they should.

In the August 2026 edition of The Bliss Luxury Market Report, the clearest distinction is the amount of inventory available at different price points. Homes priced from $1 million to under $1.5 million had about 3.1 months of supply. At $4 million and above, that figure was 14.4 months.

That is a substantial difference in the balance between available homes and recent sales. It helps explain why one seller may be in a stronger position while another needs a more patient, carefully considered approach.

I created The Bliss Luxury Market Report to make those distinctions easier to see. It brings together Cape-wide MLS data, a closer look at the towns where I work, and the context that makes the numbers useful when you are deciding what to do next.

Explore the full August 2026 edition of The Bliss Luxury Market Report for the price-range, town, waterfront and home-size comparisons.

What August tells us

Across Cape Cod, 86 single-family homes sold for $1 million or more in August, compared with 83 a year earlier. The median sale price was $1,662,500, down 6.3% from August 2025.

A lower monthly median does not tell us that an individual home lost 6.3% of its value. The midpoint can change with the mix of homes sold. The longer view is steadier: 987 luxury closings over the trailing 12 months, up 7.5%, with a median of $1.558 million, up 0.5%.

The more useful question for a particular buyer or seller is where that home sits within the larger picture.

Below $2 million, relative inventory is tighter

The $1 million to under-$1.5 million range recorded 440 sales over the trailing year, with 115 active listings in the September 1 snapshot. The $1.5 million to under-$2 million range had 227 sales and 82 active listings, or 4.3 months of supply.

Together, these two ranges accounted for nearly 68% of the Cape’s $1 million-plus closings. This is where much of the transaction activity took place, with fewer available homes relative to the recent sales pace.

For a seller, that makes a well-supported price and a thoughtful presentation valuable. For a buyer, it is a reason to know the relevant comparables and be prepared when a home meets your priorities. A broad headline about a slower luxury market may say little about the home you are considering.

At $4 million and above, buyers have more choice

At the upper end, the report recorded 85 active listings against 71 closed sales over the trailing year. That works out to 14.4 months of supply.

Months of supply compares available listings with the average monthly closing pace over the past year. It is a way to compare the balance of a market, rather than a prediction of how long any one home will take to sell.

The implication is meaningful: buyers have a larger selection relative to the pace of transactions. There may be more room to compare properties, revisit a favorite and develop a considered offer. The actual negotiating room depends on the property, its asking price and the seller’s circumstances.

For sellers, the task is to make the value clear. A distinctive setting or exceptional home can stand out, but the asking price still needs to make sense alongside the alternatives a buyer can purchase today.

The town matters, too

Among the seven towns featured in the report, Harwich had the tightest relative inventory: 17 active listings against 67 trailing-year sales, or 3.0 months of supply. Chatham had 4.0 months of supply and the group’s highest median sale price, $1.975 million. Wellfleet had the most supply in this group at 6.7 months.

These are comparisons within the $1 million-plus single-family market. A town-wide number can still conceal very different conditions for waterfront homes, village properties and homes in different price ranges.

A waterfront address adds another layer

Waterfront homes in the report sold at a median of $2.3 million, compared with $1.8 million for homes reporting a water view without frontage. Waterfront homes also had a longer average marketing time and more supply relative to sales.

Those figures do not put a fixed dollar value on waterfront. The groups include different towns, home sizes and conditions. They do show why the water relationship belongs in the analysis: frontage, view quality, dock access and the setting can change which properties a buyer considers comparable.

What does this mean for your next move?

If you are considering a sale, start with the homes a buyer would seriously compare with yours. Look at the relevant price range and town, then narrow the field by condition, layout, setting and water relationship. The asking prices of competing homes matter, but so do the prices buyers have actually paid.

If you are buying, use the report to set expectations, then evaluate each opportunity on its own merits. A market with more inventory may give you room to be deliberate. A tighter segment may reward preparation and a clear understanding of what you value most.

The Bliss Luxury Market Report is a starting point for that conversation. My role is to connect the broader data with the details of the property and the decisions in front of you.

Read the full August 2026 edition of The Bliss Luxury Market Report, or get in touch to talk about buying or selling in Chatham, Orleans, Harwich, Brewster, Dennis, Eastham or Wellfleet.

Sarah Keith | Broker Associate | eXp Realty508.237.4745 | sarah@capecodbliss.com

Cape Cod Real Estate Market Data by Town

In addition to The Bliss Luxury Market Report, I provide monthly detailed real estate market data by town across Cape Cod: —

Barnstable — Brewster — Chatham — Dennis — Eastham — Harwich — Orleans — Provincetown — Truro — Wellfleet — Yarmouth 

Each page now includes key monthly metrics, year-over-year comparisons, recent sales, current listings, pending activity and inventory by price range.

Cape Cod is not one single market - each town has its own inventory, demand and pricing dynamics. These reports make it easier to see what is happening in a specific market right now.

About the data

Source: Cape Cod & Islands MLS exports supplied by Sarah Keith and analyzed for The Bliss Luxury Market Report. Single-family homes across all 15 Cape Cod towns. Closed sales qualify at a sold price of $1 million or more; active listings qualify at an asking price of $1 million or more. August sales cover August 1-31, 2026. The trailing year covers September 1, 2025-August 31, 2026, compared with the preceding 12 months. Active inventory is the September 1, 2026 snapshot. Months of supply equals active listings divided by average monthly trailing-year closings. Waterfront includes all reported frontage; water-view-only excludes waterfront. Small sample sizes and the mix of properties sold can influence results. Information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.

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Sarah Keith | Broker Associate, REALTOR®

Cape Cod Bliss | Brokered by eXp Realty

Phone: 508-237-4745 | Email: sarah@capecodbliss.com

Office: 60 Munson Meeting Way, Unit J, Chatham, MA 02633 Massachusetts Real Estate Broker License: #9633942

Equal Housing Opportunity. Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed.