Home prices rise across the U.S.

The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index reported a 5.8% annual gain in March, up from 5.7% last month and setting a 33-month high. Seattle, Portland and Dallas led the way with the highest year-over-year gains among 20 cities tracked by the index, with scores growing 12.3%, 9.2% and 8.6%, respectively.

“Sales of both new and existing homes, housing starts and the National Association of Home Builders’ sentiment index are all trending higher,” said David M. Blitzer, Managing Director and Chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices. “Over the last year, analysts suggested that one factor pushing prices higher was the unusually low inventory of homes for sale. People are staying in their homes longer rather than selling and trading up. If mortgage rates, currently near 4%, rise further, this could deter more people from selling and keep pressure on inventories and prices. “

Blitzer added: “While prices cannot rise indefinitely, there is no way to tell when rising prices and mortgage rates will force a slowdown in housing.”

The following chart shows the latest S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices for 20 cities, and the year-over-year change.

Atlanta 134.81, up 5.5%

Boston 198.26, up 7.7%

Charlotte 145.96, up 6.7%

Chicago 136.97, up 5.1%

Cleveland 112.80, up 4.3%

Dallas 173.43, up 8.6%

Denver 194.23, up 8.4%

Detroit 111.01, up 7.0%

Las Vegas 156.51, up 6.4%

Los Angeles 257.44, up 5.3%

Miami 221.25, up 6.0%

Minneapolis 156.64, up 6.8%

New York 186.85, up 4.1%

Phoenix 166.32, up 5.6%

Portland 213.13, up 9.2%

San Diego 235.61, up 6.5%

San Francisco 235.23, up 5.1%

Seattle 216.79, up 12.3%

Tampa 188.73, up 5.1%

Washington 218.11, up 4.2%

Composite-10 209.11, up 5.2%

Composite-20 195.39, up 5.9%

U.S. National 186.95, up 5.8%