CoreLogic Chief Economist Dr. Selma Hepp told Inman, “despite much-needed optimism, brought on by a sharp drop in mortgage rates in August, the improvement was short-lived and not enough to revive homebuyer interest.”
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US home prices rose modestly in August, with both the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) and the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices recording an annual gain of 4.2 percent despite affordability challenges, both agencies reported Tuesday.
The FHFA House Price Index (HPI) showed a 0.3 percent increase in home prices from July to August, while the previously reported gain for July was revised up to 0.2 percent, according to the FHFA. Monthly price changes in the nine census tracts varied from a 0.1 percent decrease in the Midwest and New England to a 0.9 percent increase in the Midwest and North.
Annual growth in all of these categories has been positive, from 2.4 percent in the Midwest to 6.3 percent in the Midwest and Northeast, although affordability challenges persist, according to FHFA Deputy Director Dr. Anju Vajja.
“House prices in the United States remained modest for the sixth month in a row,” added Dr. Vajja, talking about the effect of locked interest rates on purchases.
The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Index provided further insight into regional diversity. Year over year, the 10-City Composite rose 6.0 percent, while the 20-City Composite posted an increase of 5.2 percent, with New York, Las Vegas and Chicago leading the gains, according to
Month-on-month, the unadjusted national index fell slightly by 0.1 percent but rose by 0.3 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis.
Selma Hepp
CoreLogic’s Chief Economist Dr. Selma Hepp told Inman, “Despite some much-needed optimism, caused by a sharp drop in mortgage rates in August, the boost was short-lived and not enough to revive homebuyer interest.”
He continued, “As a result, house prices continued to weaken relative to their seasonal trends and year-on-year gains reversed. Still, the double-digit increase in housing demand and price growth remained, as the West and South saw strong declines in home prices, while the Northeast and Midwest continued to experience strong gains.”
Brian Luke
Brian D. Luke, head of commodities, real and digital assets at S&P Dow Jones Indices (DJI), also noted that “home price growth is beginning to show signs of depression, recording the slowest annual gain since mortgage rates increased in 2023.” He pointed out that part of this is due to the general seasonal decline as “home buyers seemed less willing to increase the index than in the summer months.”
Price stability has been particularly strong in the Northeast, with New York reaching record highs.
Markets in green states have outperformed red states since mid-2023, while the Northeast and other parts of the West are seeing continued growth compared to the South and West, where affordability issues weigh heavily on price gains.
Email Richelle Hammiel
