The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index, out Tuesday morning, reported a 4.7% annual gain in December, down from 5.1% in the previous month and the ninth consecutive month of decelerating price gains.
The 10- City Composite annual increase came in at 3.8%, down from 4.2% in the previous month. The 20-City Composite posted a 4.2% year-over-year gain, down from 4.6% in the previous month.
Las Vegas, Phoenix and Atlanta reported the highest year-over-year gains among the 20 cities. In December, Las Vegas led the way with an 11.4% year-over-year price increase, followed by Phoenix with an 8.0% increase and Atlanta with a 5.9% increase. Three of the 20 cities reported greater price increases in the year ending December 2018 versus the year ending November 2018.
Before seasonal adjustment, the National Index posted a month-over-month decrease of 0.1% in December. The 10-City and 20-City Composites both reported 0.2% decreases for the month. After seasonal adjustment, the National Index recorded a 0.3% month-over-month increase in December. The 10-City Composite and the 20-City Composite both posted 0.2% month-over-month increases. In December, five of 20 cities reported increases before seasonal adjustment, while 14 of 20 cities reported increases after seasonal adjustment.
“The annual rate of price increases continues to fall,” said David M. Blitzer, managing director and chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices. “Even at the reduced pace of 4.7% per year, home prices continue to outpace wage gains of 3.5% to 4% and inflation of about 2%. A decline in interest rates in the fourth quarter was not enough to offset the impact of rising prices on home sales. The monthly number of existing single family homes sold dropped throughout 2018, reaching an annual rate of 4.45 million in December. The 2018 full year sales pace was 4.74 million.
Blitzer continued, “Regional patterns continue to shift. Seattle and Portland, OR experienced the fastest price increases of any city from late 2016 to the spring of 2018; in December, they ranked 11th and 16th. Currently, the cities with the fastest price increases are Las Vegas and Phoenix. These are a reminder of how prices rose and collapsed in the financial crisis 12 years ago. Despite their recent gains, Las Vegas and Phoenix are the furthest below their 2006 peaks of any city followed in the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices.
