Price Appreciation Down In Q3 2024

ByTMN Editor Reading Time: 2 minutes

Home price growth trended down in September, the result of “technical factors” that put a dent in record-high prices, experts say.

Price gains cooled to 3.9% YOY in August, falling from a 4.3% annual rate the month prior but still elevated, according to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller National Home Price NSA Index. 

Month-over-month, national prices maintained the same downward momentum as in August, falling at 0.1% after seasonal adjustment. The 20-City Composite and the 10-City Composite registered -0.3% and -0.4% returns, respectively.

“Home price growth stalled in the third quarter, after a steady start to 2024. The slight downtick could be attributed to technical factors as the seasonally adjusted figures boasted a 16th consecutive all-time high,” Brian D. Luke, CFA, Head of Commodities, Real & Digital Assets, commented. 

“We continue to see above-trend price growth in the Northeast and Midwest, growing 5.7% and 5.4%, respectively, led by New York, Cleveland, and Chicago. The Big Apple has taken the top spot for five consecutive months, pushing the region ahead of all others since August 2023. The South region reported its slowest growth in over a year, rising 2.8%, barely above current inflation levels.” 

The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s latest House Price Index, meanwhile, showed prices up 0.7% from August to September.

Appreciation gained 4.3% between Q3 2023 and Q3 2024, and 0.7% quarter-over-quarter.

“U.S. house price growth slowed in the third quarter, continuing a trend that started in the fourth quarter of the previous year,” said Dr. Anju Vajja, Deputy Director for FHFA’s Division of Research and Statistics.

“While house prices continued to increase because housing demand outpaced the locked-in housing supply, elevated house prices and mortgage rates likely contributed to the slowdown in price growth.”

Inventory is slowly recovering, with some regions seeing an explosion in listings. On the flip side, markets like Cape Coral and Fort Myers, which suffered serious hurricane damage in the last few years, are experiencing softening markets and stale listings.