WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. home prices rose in February from a
year earlier at a solid pace, suggesting that a tight supply of
available homes is boosting prices despite slowing sales.
Real
estate data provider CoreLogic said Tuesday that prices for existing
homes rose 12.2 percent in February from a year ago. That was up
slightly from January’s year-over-year pace of 12 percent.
On a
month-to-month basis, prices in February rose 0.8 percent from January.
But CoreLogic’s month-to-month prices aren’t adjusted for seasonal
patterns, such as winter weather, which can depress sales.
Snowstorms,
rising prices and higher mortgage rates combined to reduce home sales
in February to their lowest level in 19 months.
A tight supply is
helping boost prices even as sales slow. Sales fell 0.4 percent to a
seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.6 million in February from January,
the National Association of Realtors said earlier this month. That
sales pace would exhaust the number of available homes in 5.2 months,
the Realtors’ said — below the six-month supply typically available in
healthy markets.
The states with the biggest price gains in the
past year were: California, where prices rose 19.8 percent, followed by
Nevada, 18.5 percent, and Georgia, 14.2 percent. No states posted a drop
in home prices.
Prices in four states reached a record high in
February: Colorado, Nebraska, North Dakota and Texas. An additional 22
states are within 10 percent of their previous peaks, CoreLogic says.
Nationwide, average home prices remain 16.9 percent below the peak reached in April 2006, at the height
of the housing bubble.
Home
sales and construction faltered over the winter, partly because harsh
weather discouraged some Americans from venturing out to house-hunt. In
addition, the average rate on a 30-year mortgage is about a percentage
point more than it was last spring. That means buying costs are up.
Most
economists think the housing recovery could pick up once the spring
buying season begins, though likely at a slower pace than last year.
But
some recent reports haven’t been encouraging. A measure of signed
contracts fell for the eighth straight month in February. That suggests
sales will remain slow in coming months. Signed contracts usually lead
to a finished sale in one to two months.
And home construction
fell for a third straight month in February. But there was one hopeful
sign: Developers applied for the most building permits in four months.
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