U.S. house prices remained largely flat in July, up 0.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from the previous month, but was up noticeably when compared to last year, according to the latest Federal Housing Finance Agency [1] (FHFA) monthly House Price Index report [1].
The index, which calculates home sales price information from mortgages sold to or guaranteed by Fannie Mae [2] and Freddie Mac [3], showed that house prices grew nearly 6 percent compared to July 2015. Seasonally adjusted monthly price changes from June to July ranged from an increase of 0.2 percent in the Middle Atlantic division to an increase of 1, to 216.3, percent in the East South Central division. The West North Central region also reported a gain of almost a full percent, finishing July at a seasonally adjusted rate of 238.2
The 12-month changes were also all positive, FHFA reported. Increases nationally over the year ranged from 2.6 percent in the Middle Atlantic division to 7.7 percent in the Pacific division.
According to FHFA, the U.S. house price index (purchase-only) now stands at 236.1. The benchmark of 100 was set in 1991. The latest number comes after an upwardly revised value of 235 in August. Year-over-year, house prices are up from an index of 223.1 in July 2015. The index has steadily risen every month since its nadir of 179.51 in March 2011.