Home prices grew more quickly than usual at the end of 2023 to finish at an all-time high. It’s a side effect of the market for existing homes that dried up as mortgage rates rose.
Prices rose 6.1% from year-ago levels in the S&P CoreLogic Case Shiller Home Price Indices, which tracks prices in 20 of the nation’s largest cities, up from 5.4% in November, and beating FactSet consensus estimates that called for a 5.9% increase. Prices nationally rose 5.5%.
National home prices on a seasonally-adjusted basis reached a record level in December, Brian D. Luke, S&P Dow Jones Indices’ Head of Commodities, Real & Digital Assets, said in a statement. “Looking back at the year, 2023 appears to have exceeded average annual home price gains over the past 35 years,” he said, adding that “with trend growth at the national level of 4.7%, a 5.5% return demonstrates solid, steady growth.”