Monthly home price appreciation gained steam in August even as a growing number of markets reported declines, according to FNC, Inc. [1]
The company's Residential Price Index [2] (RPI) posted national growth of 0.8 percent in August, accelerating from July's 0.6 percent increase.
FNC's 30-city composite index increased 0.9 percent month-to-month, while the 10-city composite nearly tripled its rate of appreciation to 1.1 percent.
On a yearly basis, growth at the national level came to 7.5 percent, unchanged from July and down half a percentage point from June. Annual price growth has been on a downward trend since last fall.
Again, the narrower composites performed slightly better, with the 30-city composite climbing 8.2 percent year-over-year and the 10-city index rising 8.8 percent. Both increased at higher rates than in July.
Not all cities saw an acceleration, however. According to FNC, prices were up month-over-month in 22 of the 30 markets tracked in its 30-city composite index compared to 25 cities in July. Gains were led by Cleveland and Los Angeles, which each posted increases of 2.6 percent, followed by Dallas at 2.5 percent.
A number of other California markets struggled: For the first time since the recovery took hold in February 2012, home prices in San Francisco fell on a monthly basis, dropping 2.1 percent. Prices also dipped in Sacramento and Riverside, slipping 2.6 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively.
On a year-to-year basis, only two cities posted price declines: Cincinnati and St. Louis, with depreciation rates of 1.7 percent and 1.6 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, one-third of markets tracked continue to see double-digit gains—including Riverside, San Francisco, and Sacramento, FNC reported.