US housing prices decline for 6th straight month

Source: S&P Global Market Intelligence — 

Home prices edged slightly lower in the U.S. in December 2022, marking the sixth consecutive month of falling housing prices as the challenging macroeconomic environment reduced buyer appetite. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index fell by 0.3% month over month.

Despite home prices declining in the second half of 2022, the U.S. National Home Price index was up 5.8% year over year during the month, weaker compared to the index’s 7.6% year-over-year increase in November 2022.

“The prospect of stable, or higher, interest rates means that mortgage financing remains a headwind for home prices, while economic weakness, including the possibility of a recession, may also constrain potential buyers,” said Craig Lazzara, managing director at S&P Dow Jones Indices.

Miami gets top spot in home price increases

Housing price increases continued to slow in all 20 cities covered in the 20-City Composite index, which posted a year-over-year rise of 4.6% compared to 6.8% in the previous month.