Nine States See New Home Price Peaks in October

Home price growth picked up the pace in October, pushing a growing number of states to new peaks, according to report released Tuesday.

Real estate information firm CoreLogic reported a 0.5 percent monthly uptick and a 6.1 percent annual gain in its October Home Price Index (HPI). The report, which includes distressed sales data, marks the 32nd straight month for year-over-year price growth, though increases have slowed down by nearly half compared to a year ago.

"Home price growth is moderating as we head into the late fall and is currently running at half the pace it was in the spring of 2014," said Sam Khater, deputy chief economist at CoreLogic. "However, there are still pockets of strength, especially in several Texas markets, as well as Seattle, Denver, and other markets with strong economic fundamentals."

As of October, 27 states and the District of Columbia were at or within 10 percent of their home price peaks, and nine had achieved new record highs: Colorado, Louisiana, Nebraska, New York, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, and Wyoming.

According to the company, the five states with the highest pace of appreciation over the last year were Michigan (10.5 percent), South Dakota (10.4 percent), Montana (9.1 percent), Texas (8.7 percent), and Colorado (8.6 percent). All states posted annual growth, helped in part by rosier job prospects and increased confidence in housing.

"The gradual recovery of the housing market continues to be propelled by improving employment, more buyer and seller confidence, continued low rates and, in certain parts of the country, investor demand," said CoreLogic's CEO, Anand Nallathambi. "Based on our projections, home prices in over half the country will have reached or surpassed levels last seen at the height of the housing bubble sometime in mid-2015."

Looking ahead, however, the company expects prices will continue to slow, forecasting a 0.2 percent monthly increase in November and a 5.1 percent improvement this time next year.