Global| Sep 23 2020U.S. FHFA House Price Index Remains Strong in July
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
• FHFA home price index gains continue to improve. • Price increases are widespread across the country. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Price Index strengthened 1.0% during July following a like increase in June, revised [...]
• FHFA home price index gains continue to improve.
• Price increases are widespread across the country.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Price Index strengthened 1.0% during July following a like increase in June, revised from 0.9%. Over the last year, home prices have strengthened 6.5%.
Home prices increased in each of the nine census divisions. Prices were strongest in New England where they improved 2.0% (7.0% y/y) and in the East South Central region where they rose 1.4% (7.7% y/y). Prices rose 1.3% (6.7% y/y) in the East North Central region.
In the Mountain region, home prices increased 1.1% (7.7% y/y) and by 1.0% (5.7% y/y) in the Middle Atlantic states as well as in the Pacific region (5.9% y/y).
Moderate gains were logged elsewhere with 0.8% increases in the South Atlantic (6.8% y/y) and West South Central (5.4% y/y) regions. In the West North Central region of the country house prices rose a lessened 0.6% (6.2% y/y).
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.
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| FHFA U.S. House Price Index, Purchase Only (SA %) |
Jul | Jun | May | Jul Y/Y | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 1.0 | 1.0 | -0.2 | 6.5 | 5.3 | 6.5 | 6.3 |
| New England | 2.0 | 1.3 | -1.1 | 7.0 | 4.6 | 5.1 | 5.6 |
| Middle Atlantic | 1.0 | 0.3 | -0.0 | 5.7 | 4.5 | 5.3 | 4.7 |
| East North Central | 1.3 | 0.9 | -0.3 | 6.7 | 5.4 | 6.4 | 5.8 |
| West North Central | 0.6 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 6.2 | 5.1 | 6.0 | 5.1 |
| South Atlantic | 0.8 | 0.9 | 0.4 | 6.8 | 5.7 | 7.0 | 6.5 |
| East South Central | 1.4 | 1.3 | -0.3 | 7.7 | 5.9 | 6.0 | 5.5 |
| West South Central | 0.8 | 1.1 | -0.3 | 5.4 | 4.7 | 5.2 | 6.0 |
| Mountain | 1.1 | 1.3 | -0.5 | 7.7 | 7.1 | 9.0 | 8.3 |
| Pacific | 1.0 | 1.3 | -0.8 | 5.9 | 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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