NEW YORK–The growth of home prices in the U.S. slowed for the second straight month in October, an indication that the hot housing market may be starting to cool at least a bit.
The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller National Home Price Index, which measures average home prices in major metropolitan areas across the nation, rose 19.1% in the year that ended in October, down from a 19.7% annual rate the prior month, according to the company.
The news comes as home inventories remain tight, with forecasters predicting that even a rate increase in 2022 will not help make it easier to find a house.
The Case-Shiller index, which measures repeat-sales data, reports on a two-month delay.
The Wall Street Journal noted the median existing-home sale price in November rose 13.9% from a year earlier to $353,900, according to the National Association of Realtors.
Pushed Out of the Market
Rising home prices are pushing some buyers out of the market. While the number of home sales rose in November, NAR data show the proportion of first-time buyers fell to 26%, the lowest level since January 2014 and down from 32% a year earlier, the Journal added
“U.S. home prices moved substantially higher, but at a decelerating rate,” Craig Lazzara, managing director at S&P Dow Jones Indices, told the Wall Street Journal. “That said, October’s 19.1% gain in the national composite is the fourth-highest reading in the 34 years covered by our data” with the top three being the three months preceding October.
The Case-Shiller 10-city index gained 17.1% over the year ended in October, compared with a 17.9% increase in September. The 20-city index rose 18.4%, after an annual gain of 19.1% in September. Price growth accelerated in six of the 20 cities.
The Wall Street Journal noted that economists it surveyed expect the 20-city index to gain 18.6%.