Land costs, labor drive Boston-area housing prices out of control The average 1,600 square-foot apartment today costs more than $438,000 to build, said Barry Bluestone, a Northeastern University professor who authored the report. “You’re just out of the ballpark for any working family,” said Bluestone, who heads Northeastern’s Dukakis Center for Urban and Regional Policy. “The cost is so high that the only construction developers […]