U.S. home prices rose at the highest rate in more than 30 years in April as buyer demand continued to outstrip supply.
Average national home prices increased 14.6% year over year in April, up from a 13.3% annual pace the prior month, according to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller National Home Price Index.
The 10-City Composite annual increase came in at 14.4%, up from 12.9% in March, while the 20-City Composite rose 14.9% annually, up from 13.4%.
“April’s performance was truly extraordinary,” Craig Lazzara, managing director and global head of index investment strategy at S&P Dow Jones Indices, said in a news release. “The 14.6% gain in the National Composite is literally the highest reading in more than 30 years of S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller data.”
Five cities – Charlotte, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, and Seattle – recorded their all-time highest 12-month gains in home prices.
As Yahoo Finance reports, “The results were expected and follow similar data pointing to skyrocketing home prices well into the busy spring season.” The National Association of Realtors reported last week that the median existing-home price rose 23.6% in May to a record high of $350,000.
Bank of America had forecast a 14% increase in the Case-Schiller index for April. “Elevated buyer demand, coupled with lacking for-sale inventories, will continue putting pressure on prices,” said Selma Hepp, CoreLogic’s deputy chief economist.
Experts, though, expect home sales to fall in May. According to Realtor.com, the median listing price for the week ended June 19 increased 12.2%, compared with a high of 19% in early April.
“I realize that calling 12% price increases a shift in a buyer-friendly direction might ring a little bit hollow to some buyers,” Realtor.com Chief Economist Danielle Hale told Yahoo Finance. But, she added, “it’s certainly a step in the right direction.”
The Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index, also released Tuesday, showed that home prices rose 15.7% in April.
“This unprecedented price growth persists due to strong demand, bolstered by still-low mortgage rates, and too few homes for sale,” said FHFA deputy director of the division of research and statistics Lynn Fisher.