Home Prices Hit New High in October

Month-over-month data showed a 1.4 percent increase in the National Index and a 1.3 percent increase in the 20-City Composite, before seasonal adjustment.

“We’ve noted before that a trend of accelerating increases in the National Composite Index began in August 2019 but was interrupted in May and June, as COVID-related restrictions produced modestly-decelerating price gains,” said Craig J. Lazzara, Managing Director and Global Head of Index Investment Strategy at S&P Dow Jones Indices. “Since June, our monthly readings have shown accelerating growth in home prices, and October’s results emphatically emphasize that trend. The last time that the National Composite matched this month’s 8.4 percent growth rate was more than six and a half years ago, in March 2014. Although the full history of the pandemic’s impact on housing prices is yet to be written, the data from the last several months are consistent with the view that COVID has encouraged potential buyers to move from urban apartments to suburban homes.”

Phoenix topped the list at a 12.7 increase, leading the nation for the 17th consecutive month. Seattle was second at 11.6 percent and San Diego third at 11.6 percent. “Prices were strongest in the West and Southwest regions, but even the comparatively weak Midwest and Northeast (up 7.7 percent and 7.9 percent, respectively) performed creditably well,” said Lazzara.