The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller US National Home Price NSA Index reported a 2.3% annual return for May, down from a 2.7% annual gain in the previous month. The 10-City Composite saw an annual increase of 3.4%, down from a 4.1% annual increase in the previous month, while the 20-City Composite posted a year-over-year increase of 2.8%, down from a 3.4% increase in the previous month.
The pre-seasonally adjusted US National Index posted a 0.4% gain while the 10-City Composite and 20-City Composite Indices both reported gains of 0.4%. After the seasonal adjustment, all three indices recorded a decrease of -0.3%.
New York City again reported the highest annual gain among the 20 cities with a 7.4% increase in May, followed by Chicago and Detroit with annual increases of 6.1% and 4.9%, respectively. Tampa posted the lowest return, falling 2.4%
“May’s data continued the year’s slow unwind of price momentum, with annual gains narrowing for a fourth consecutive month,” said Nicholas Godec, head of fixed income tradables and commodities at S&P Dow Jones Indices. “National home prices were just 2.3% higher than a year ago, the smallest increase since July 2023, and nearly all of that gain occurred in the most recent six months. The spring market lifted prices modestly, but not enough to suggest sustained acceleration.”
Godec added, “Seasonal momentum is proving weaker than usual, and the slowdown is now more than just a story of higher mortgage rates. It reflects a market recalibrating around tighter financial conditions, subdued transaction volumes, and increasingly local dynamics. With affordability still stretched and inventory constrained, national home prices are holding steady, but barely.”
Separately, the Federal Housing Finance Agency reported home prices were down in May by 0.2% month-over-month, but were up 2.8% year-over-year. The previously reported 0.4% price decline in April was revised to a 0.3% decline.
For the nine census divisions, seasonally adjusted monthly home price changes ranged from -0.8% in the Middle Atlantic division to +0.3% in the West South Central and New England divisions. The 12-month changes were all positive, ranging from 0.6% in the Pacific division to +5.9% in the Middle Atlantic division.
