Global| Dec 23 2020U.S. FHFA House Price Index Continues to Strengthen
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
• Home price gain sets record for third straight month. • Prices continue to strengthen regionally. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) House Price Index increased 1.5% during October following an unrevised record 1.7% September [...]
• Home price gain sets record for third straight month.
• Prices continue to strengthen regionally.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) House Price Index increased 1.5% during October following an unrevised record 1.7% September increase. The series dates back to January 1991. Over the past year, house prices have increased 10.2%, the fastest pace since September 2005. In the last three months, prices have risen at a 20.9% annual rate, up from 5.9% twelve months earlier.
Home prices were firm across the country. Monthly price gains were strongest in New England where they rose 2.1% (12.5% y/y). Prices rose 1.7% in the Middle Atlantic (10.4% y/y), Mountain (12.5% y/y) and Pacific (10.6% y/y) regions.
Prices rose 1.6% in the East North Central (10.3% y/y), 1.5% in the South Atlantic (9.8% y/y) and 1.2% (8.4% y/y) in the West South Central regions.
Monthly gains of 0.9% were logged in the West North Central (9.5% y/y) and East South Central (10.2% y/y) regions of the country.
The FHFA house price index is a weighted purchase-only index that measures average price changes in repeat sales of the same property. An associated quarterly index includes refinancings on the same kinds of properties. The indexes are based on transactions involving conforming, conventional mortgages purchased or securitized by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. Only mortgage transactions on single-family properties are included. The FHFA data are available in Haver's USECON database.
| FHFA U.S. House Price Index, Purchase Only (SA %) |
Oct | Sep | Aug | Oct Y/Y | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 1.5 | 1.7 | 1.6 | 10.2 | 5.3 | 6.5 | 6.3 |
| New England | 2.1 | 2.2 | 1.8 | 12.5 | 4.6 | 5.1 | 5.6 |
| Middle Atlantic | 1.7 | 2.1 | 1.9 | 10.4 | 4.5 | 5.3 | 4.7 |
| East North Central | 1.6 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 10.3 | 5.4 | 6.4 | 5.8 |
| West North Central | 0.9 | 1.8 | 1.5 | 9.5 | 5.1 | 6.0 | 5.1 |
| South Atlantic | 1.5 | 1.6 | 1.6 | 9.8 | 5.7 | 7.0 | 6.5 |
| East South Central | 0.9 | 2.0 | 1.2 | 10.2 | 5.9 | 6.0 | 5.5 |
| West South Central | 1.2 | 0.9 | 1.7 | 8.4 | 4.7 | 5.2 | 6.0 |
| Mountain | 1.7 | 2.0 | 1.8 | 12.5 | 7.1 | 9.0 | 8.3 |
| Pacific | 1.7 | 1.8 | 1.8 | 10.6 | 4.7 | 7.3 | 8.4 |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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