“The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Home Price Indices Index suggests the USA housing market is stabilizing as the rate of price gains flatten for the fourth straight month”, McLaughlin said.
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WASHINGTON (AP) – U.S. home prices extended their steady upward march in May, spurred by rising sales and a dwindling supply of available houses.
Monthly home prices rose in twelve of the twenty cities covered by the index.
Nationally, the Case-Shiller was up 5.0 percent year-over-year in May, which was identical to April’s yearly gain.
A lot is going right in the US housing market right now: Mortgage rates are low, job creation is strong, unemployment is low.
“Sellers are in the driver’s seat, as buyers contend with fierce competition and very fast-moving markets”, Gudell said.
In May, Portland increased the most 12.5% annually, followed by Seattle at 10.7% and Denver at 9.5%.
While the 20 city-index remains below its bubble level, seven cities reached new peaks in April, including Portland, Seattle and Denver as well as Boston, Charlotte, Dallas and San Francisco.
“The US housing market continues to cool, as May represents the fourth straight month of flat or decreasing year-over-year price gains”, said Ralph McLaughlin, Trulia chief economist.
The 10- and 20-city Composites, which focus on specific metro areas, rose 4.4 and 5.2 percent year-over-year, respectively.
“The two hottest areas during the housing boom were Florida and the Southwest”, he said, adding that Miami and Tampa have recovered in the last few months while Las Vegas and Phoenix remain weak.
2007 as construction of new homes showed continuing gains.
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Homebuyer demand fell 17% in June compared to the same time last year, the fifth consecutive month of year-over-year declines, according to Redfin, a real-estate brokerage, as fewer customers requested home tours and wrote offers. “So when you have not-enough inventory, and a substantial amount of demand in the market, what you see is prices increase”. The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate rose to 3.45 percent last week, according to Freddie Mac.
