U.S. house prices rose 7.8 percent from the third quarter of 2019 to the third quarter of 2020 according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index (FHFA HPI®). House prices were up 3.1 percent in the third quarter of 2020. FHFA’s seasonally adjusted monthly index for September was up 1.7 percent from August.
”House prices recorded their strongest quarterly gain in the history of the FHFA HPI purchase-only series in the third quarter of 2020,” said Dr. Lynn Fisher, deputy director of the Division of Research and Statistics at FHFA. “Relative to a year ago, prices were up 7.8 percent during the quarter—the fastest year-over-year rate of appreciation since 2006. Monthly data indicate that prices continued to accelerate during the quarter, reaching 9.1 percent in September, as demand continues to outpace the supply of homes available for sale.”
View highlights video featuring Dr. Lynn Fisher at https://youtu.be/qK47v7eLfcQ.
Significant Findings
– House prices have risen for 37 consecutive quarters, or since September 2011.
– House prices rose in all 50 states and the District of Columbia between the third quarters of 2019 and 2020. Idaho has been the leading state for the last eight quarters. The top five areas in annual appreciation were:
1. Idaho: 14.4 percent
2. Arizona: 11.1 percent
3. Washington: 10.8 percent
4. Utah: 10.7 percent
5: Tennessee: 10.0 percent.
– The areas showing the lowest annual appreciation were:
1. North Dakota: 4.0 percent
2. Iowa: 4.7 percent
3. Louisiana: 4.8 percent
4. Alaska: 4.9 percent
5. Hawaii: 5.2 percent
– House prices rose in all the top 100 largest metropolitan areas in the U.S. over the last four quarters. Annual price increases were greatest in Boise City, Ida., where prices increased by 16.4 percent. Prices were weakest in Baton Rouge, La., where they increased by 2.1 percent.
– Of the nine census divisions, the Mountain division experienced the strongest four-quarter appreciation, posting a 9.6 percent gain between the third quarters of 2019 and 2020 and a 3.8 percent increase in the third quarter of 2020. The Mountain division has been the leading region for 12 consecutive quarters. Annual house price appreciation was weakest in the West South Central division, where prices rose by 6.5 percent between the third quarters of 2019 and 2020.
Source: FHFA
