Global| Sep 22 2016U.S. FHFA House Price Index Momentum Eases
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
The Federal Housing Finance Agency's (FHFA) index of U.S. house prices increased 0.5% during July following a 0.3% June gain, revised from 0.2%. While the y/y change of 5.8% was fairly steady, the three month gain of 4.2% (AR) was [...]
The Federal Housing Finance Agency's (FHFA) index of U.S. house prices increased 0.5% during July following a 0.3% June gain, revised from 0.2%. While the y/y change of 5.8% was fairly steady, the three month gain of 4.2% (AR) was below last year's gain of 5.7%, and the 7.5% rise during all of 2013.
Seasonally adjusted house prices rose in each region of the country.
The 1.0% price rise in the East South Central region left them up 5.4% y/y. A 0.9% price rise in the West North Central region pulled the y/y increase to 6.0%, the strongest rise of the recovery. A 0.6% increase in the Pacific region resulted in a steady 7.7% y/y rate of gain.
Prices in the East North Central region increased a modest 0.3%, and the three-month gain of 3.0% was below its 2013 peak of 5.3%. Prices in New England gained 0.3%, but over the last three months fell at a 4.0% rate. Also to the weak side were prices in the Middle Atlantic region, up 0.2% and a modest 2.6% y/y.
The FHFA house price index is a weighted repeat sales index. It measures average price changes in repeat sales of the same property. An associated quarterly index also 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 %) | Jul | Jun | May | Jul Y/Y | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 0.5 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 5.8 | 5.7 | 5.6 | 7.5 |
| Pacific | 0.6 | -0.3 | -0.1 | 7.7 | 7.9 | 9.6 | 16.1 |
| Mountain | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.8 | 7.3 | 8.0 | 7.5 | 12.3 |
| South Atlantic | 0.3 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 7.0 | 6.5 | 6.0 | 8.1 |
| West North Central | 0.9 | 0.3 | -0.1 | 6.0 | 4.4 | 4.1 | 4.9 |
| West South Central | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 5.9 | 6.6 | 5.8 | 6.2 |
| East South Central | 1.0 | -0.3 | 0.8 | 5.4 | 4.9 | 3.6 | 4.2 |
| East North Central | 0.3 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 4.9 | 4.6 | 4.7 | 5.4 |
| New England | 0.3 | 0.1 | -1.3 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 3.2 | 3.9 |
| Middle Atlantic | 0.2 | 0.2 | 1.0 | 2.6 | 2.7 | 2.4 | 2.8 |
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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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