The latest measure of American home prices revealed a consistent rise over the last year.
S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices data released for June 2017 showed Seattle, Portland, and Dallas reported the highest year-over-year gains among the 20 cities – with Seattle leading the way in June with a 13.4 percent year-over-year price increase, followed by Portland with 8.2 percent and Dallas with a 7.7 percent hike.
“The trend of increasing home prices is continuing,” David M. Blitzer, managing director and chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices, said.“Price increases are supported by a tight housing market. Both the number of homes for sale and the number of days a house is on the market have declined for four to five years.”
Officials said nine cities reported greater price increases in the year ending June 2017 versus the year ending May 2017.
The report also notes the national unemployment rate is down and the number of jobs created continues to grow at a robust pace, rising to close to 200,000 per month.
“Wages and salaries are increasing, maintaining a growth rate a bit ahead of inflation,” Blitzer said. “Mortgage rates, up slightly since the end of 2016, are under 4 percent. Given current economic conditions and the tight housing market, an immediate reversal in home price trends appears unlikely.”