Home Price Appreciation Continues to Lose Steam in August

Annual home price appreciation backed off a full percentage point in August compared to July, with further declines expected ahead.

Including distressed sales, home prices nationwide rose 6.4 percent year-over-year in August, according to the latest report from CoreLogic. The increase marks 30 straight months of year-over-year price growth nationally.

August's increase came in below July's rate of appreciation, which clocked in at 7.4 percent in CoreLogic's initial report for the month. Price increases have steadily moved downward since last fall as some of the main factors boosting growth—low supply and increased investor activity—come back to more normal levels.

"The pace of year-over-year appreciation continues to slow down as real estate markets find more balance. Home price appreciation reached a peak of almost 12 percent year-over-year in October 2013 and has since subsided to the current pace of 6 percent," said CoreLogic Chief Economist Mark Fleming. "Continued moderation of home price appreciation is a welcomed sign of more balanced real estate markets and less pressure on affordability for potential home buyers in the near future."

All states on CoreLogic's index reported annual price appreciation in August, pushing prices to new highs in nine states and the District of Columbia. Gains were led by Michigan (11.1 percent), California (9.2 percent), Nevada (9.2 percent), Maine (9 percent), and West Virginia (8.7 percent).

Excluding distressed sales, CoreLogic reported home prices nationally were up 5.9 percent in August compared to a year prior, with Mississippi (-1.7 percent) the only state posting a decline.

On a monthly basis, home prices at the national level ticked up 0.3 percent (both with and without distressed sales factored in) from July.

Looking to September, CoreLogic's predictive indicators point to another slowdown in price appreciation, with prices (including distressed sales) nudging up only 0.2 percent from August. For August 2015, the company forecasts annual growth of 5.2 percent.