US home prices rising at fastest rate in last 30 years

U.S. home prices jumped by the most in three decades in June, surging 18.6 percent on an annual basis thanks to pandemic transplants and a housing shortage.

(TheRealDeal) - U.S. home prices jumped by the most in three decades in June, surging 18.6 percent on an annual basis thanks to pandemic transplants and a housing shortage.

It was the third straight month of record-breaking price increases, surpassing May’s 16.6 jump, according to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Index. Phoenix, San Diego and Seattle led the way in June, as they did the prior month, although prices rose by 25 percent in each market, compared with 23 percent in May.

“The last several months have been extraordinary not only in the level of price gains, but in the consistency of gains across the country,” said Craig J. Lazzara, managing director and global head of Index Investment Strategy at S&P Dow Jones Indices.

The national index is now up 41.3 percent from a previous peak in July 2006, while the 20-city composite topped its high point in the same month by 29.9 percent. The 10-city composite rose by 24.1 percent from June 2006.

Prices jumped in every city that makes up the 20-city composite. Charlotte, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver and Seattle set records yet again as newcomer Boston also joined the list.