Despite the weather, home prices surge more than expected in February (as we presume those who braved the icy or heaty weather were desparate to buy). S&P/Case-Shiller 20-City index rose 0.93% MoM (vs 0.7% exp) and 5.03% YoY (vs 4.70% exp.). San Francisco led the way with a 2.0% MoM surge and Cleveland and Las Vegas were worst with home prices falling.
Nearly mission-accomplished?
[6]
After flatlining, and largely unchanged on a sequential basis since August of 2014, the February data saw a modest breakout, with home prices in the 20 City composite rising by 0.50% on the more relevant, unadjusted basis.
[7]
On an Y/Y basis, the third consecutive dead cat bounce appears to have started.
[8]
From the report:
The National Index rebounded in February, reporting a 0.1% change for the month. Both the 10- and 20-City Composites reported significant month-over-month increases of 0.5%, their largest increase since July 2014. Of the sixteen cities that reported increases, San Francisco and Denver led all cities in February with increases of 2.0%and 1.4%.
Of the 20 tracked MSAs, Cleveland reported the largest drop as prices fell 1.0%, while Las Vegas and
Boston reported declines of -0.3% and -0.2% respectively. On the other hand, San Francisco is surging again: it appears the Chinese money has once again been unlocked, with the new dot com 2.0 generation certainly helping on the high end.
[9]
As the report notes,
“Home prices continue to rise and outpace both inflation and wage gains,” said David M. Blitzer, Managing Director and Chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices. “The S&P/Case-Shiller National Index has seen 34 consecutive months with positive year-over-year gains; all 20 cities have shown year-over-year gains every month since the end of 2012. While prices are certainly rebounding, only two cities – Denver and Dallas – have surpassed their housing boom peaks. Nationally, prices are almost 10% below the high set in July 2006. Las Vegas fell 61.7% peak to trough and has the farthest to go to set a new high; it is 41.5% below its high. If a complete recovery means new highs all around, we’re not there yet.
“A better sense of where home prices are can be seen by starting in January 2000, before the housing boom accelerated, and looking at real or inflation adjusted numbers. Based on the S&P/Case-Shiller National Home Price Index, prices rose 66.8% before adjusting for inflation from January 2000 to February 2015; adjusted for inflation, this is 27.9% or a 1.7% annual rate. The highest price gain over the last 15 years was in Los Angeles with a 4.3% real annual rate; the lowest was Detroit with a -3.6% real annual rate. While nationally, prices are recovering, new construction of single family homes remains very weak despite low vacancy rates among both renters and owner-occupied homes.”
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