First monthly gain in monthly Case-Shiller data in 7 months
By Greg Robb, MarketWatch
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Home prices rose 0.8% in April compared with March in 20 major U.S. cities, according to the Case-Shiller home price index released Tuesday by Standard & Poor's.
Prices have moved up 3.8% in the past year, marking the third consecutive gain.
Prices rose in 18 of the 20 metropolitan areas tracked by Case-Shiller in April compared with March. Miami and New York were the two regions that suffered price declines. The data are not seasonally adjusted.
This is the first monthly increase after six straight declines. David Blitzer, chairman of the index committee at Standard & Poor's, attributed the price increase to the rush of buyers seeking to take advantage of expiring tax credits.
Since the tax credit expired on April 30, other housing data for May has confirmed a sharp decline in activity.
"Consistent and sustained boosts to economic growth from housing may have to wait to next year," Blitzer said.
The biggest month-to-month increase came in Washington, where April prices rose 2.4%. This was followed by San Francisco, where prices gained 2.2% and Dallas, where prices gained 2.0%.
In the past year, prices were higher in 11 of 20 cities, led by an 18.0% rise in San Francisco. The largest annual decline was 8.5% in Las Vegas.
Here's a list of the 20 cities in the Case-Shiller index, with percentage changes over the past year:
San Francisco, up 18.0%; San Diego, up 11.7%; Minneapolis, up 9.5%; Los Angeles, up 7.8%; Washington, up 7.3%; Cleveland, up 6.8%; Phoenix, up 5.4%; Boston, up 4.9%; Denver, up 4.4%; Dallas, up 3.3%; Atlanta up 0.2%; Portland, down 0.4%; Miami, down 0.5%; New York, down 1.0%; Chicago, down 1.6%; Charlotte, down 2.2%; Tampa, down 2.4%; Seattle, down 2.8%; Detroit, down 3.0%; and Las Vegas, down 8.5%.
The Case-Shiller index is based on repeat sales of the same properties.
