Home Prices Could Increase 5.4% by October 2020

Home prices grew by 3.5 percent year-over-year in October and are expected to rise by 5.4 percent by the same time next year, according to a CoreLogic Home Price Index and Forecast report. Between September and October 2019, home prices grew by 0.5 percent.

Nationwide, home values have been growing steadily since 2012 and the recovery period that followed the recession. February 2016 saw peak year-over-year growth at 4.2 percent. But now, CoreLogic’s economists predict new peaks for the coming year.

While low mortgage rates and a strong job market increase Americans’ homebuying ability and therefore competition for homes, some parts of the country are not reaping in the prosperity at equal rates. Thirty-five of the country’s 100 largest cities currently have an overvalued housing market while the Northeast division comprising New York, New Jersey and White Plains saw housing values fall by 1 percent over the last year.

“Local home-price growth can deviate widely from the change in our U.S. index,” said Dr. Frank Nothaft, chief economist at CoreLogic. “While we saw prices up 3.5 percent nationally last year, home prices also declined in 22 metropolitan areas. Price softness occurred in some high-cost urban areas and in metros with weak employment growth during the past year.” That said, the numbers show that the overall American housing market is looking fairly strong — and buyer sentiment is also changing to reflect its current conditions.