Home Prices Hit a Record High to End 2023

So much for the housing crash of 2023. Home prices rose for the 11th straight month and hit a new record high to end 2023, according to the latest data from the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index.

• Y-O-Y: Home prices reported a 5.5% annual gain in December, up from 5.0% the previous month and the highest level since January.

• M-O-M: Home prices fell 0.4% from November, bigger than the 0.2% drop the prior month and the second monthly decline.

All-Time High. The U.S. National Home Price Index rose to 314.259 in December, up from 313.64 the prior month and the 11th straight rise in the seasonally adjusted index.

Better Than Expected. The 20-City Composite posted a year-over-year increase of 6.1%, up from a 5.4% increase in the previous month and bigger increase than 6.0% projected by economists.

Cali Back On Top. After a 4-month reign, Detroit was knocked from the top spot by San Diego which reported year-over-year housing gains of 8.8% in December. Detroit fell to second along with Los Angeles with both metros seeing 8.3% to close out 2023.

• Chicago took the fourth spot with 8.1% growth and Charlotte rounded out the top 5 with 8.0% gains.

• For the first time since November 2022 not a single top 20 metro area was in the red.

Analysis. Brian D. Luke, Head of Commodities, Real & Digital Assets at S&P Dow Jones Indices, noted that 2023 was a pretty good year for home owners. “U.S. home prices faced significant headwinds in the fourth quarter of 2023. However, on a seasonally adjusted basis, the S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Indices continued its streak of seven consecutive record highs in 2023…Looking back at the year, 2023 appears to have exceeded average annual home price gains over the
past 35 years.”