U.S. home prices, including distressed sales, increased 0.9% in August compared to July and were up 12.4% compared to July 2012, according to CoreLogic's Home Price Index (HPI).
August marked the 18th consecutive month that home prices increased year-over-year.
Excluding distressed sales (including short sales and sales of bank-owned properties), home prices increased 1% in August compared to July and were up 11.2% on a year-over-year basis.
CoreLogic is forecasting that home prices (including distressed sales) will rise 0.7% in September, compared to August, and will be up 12.2% compared to September 2012.
"Home price gains were negligible month-over-month in August – an expected decrease in the pace of appreciation as housing enters the off-season," says Dr. Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic, in a statement. "While prices increased more than 12 percent on a year-over-year basis, the month-to-month change is more telling of this year's late summer trend."
Anand Nallathambi, president and CEO of CoreLogic, notes that the ‘recent sharp rise in mortgage rates off their historic lows was a clear driver behind the slowdown’ in home sales.
"We anticipate moderate gains in home prices over the balance of this year, supported by the recent downward trend in rates and continued tight supplies of homes in many markets," Nallathambi says.
Including distressed sales, the five states with the highest home price appreciation were Nevada (+25.9%), California (+23.1%), Arizona (+16.4%), Wyoming (+15%) and Georgia (+14.8%).
Excluding distressed sales, the five states with the highest home price appreciation were Nevada (+23.4%), California (+19.8%), Arizona (+14%), Utah (+13.7%) and Florida (+13.5%).
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