Home prices rose at a slower pace in February: S & P Case-Shiller

National housing prices rose 4% in February compared with February 2018, according to the latest reading of the S & P CoreLogic Case-Shiller housing price index. This is down from an annual gain of 4.2% in January.

The composite index of the 10 cities grew by 2.6% per year, down from 3.1% the previous month. The 20 composite cities registered an increase of 3% compared to 3.5% in January.

Markets are still winning a lot: Las Vegas, Phoenix and Tampa have recorded the strongest year – over – year gains among the 20 cities. Prices in Las Vegas rose 9.7%, followed by Phoenix with a 6.7% increase and Tampa with a 5.4% increase.

Prices have risen since 2012, but these gains declined last year due to rising mortgage rates and a general overheating of values ​​across most metropolitan markets, which hurt sales.

"Home sales have declined over the past year, with the exception of a month in February 2019," said David Blitzer, Managing Director and Chairman of the S & P Dow Jones Indices Committee. Indices. "New home sales, housing starts and residential investment experienced similar similar trajectories over the past year."

While it is unlikely that home values ​​will become negative at the national level, the San Francisco Bay Area saw its prices fall each year in March for the first time since 2012, according to CoreLogic. House prices have overheated well beyond historical affordability levels, resulting in a dramatic drop in home sales over the past eight months.

"Last year, the biggest gain was in Seattle at 12.7%, with regional trends changing.The three California cities of Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego record the three fastest price increases in the world. last year, "added Blitzer. "Chicago, New York, and Cleveland have only seen price increases slightly higher than those in California, and prices have generally been rising faster in inland cities than on the shores or the Great Lakes."