Real Estate News: Home Appreciation Slows in September

Are Dallas home prices up or down? At what rate are they appreciating? We take a look at three different reports in this week’s roundup of real estate news.

CORELOGIC CASE-SHILLER REPORTS DECLINING HOME APPRECIATION

Home price gains have been slower this year across the country, but September 2018 marked the eighth consecutive month of home appreciation declines in the North Texas area, Standard & Poor’s/CoreLogic Case-Shiller Home Price Index revealed.

Price growth dipped to 4.3 percent. In the 10 months prior, median home sales increased 5 percent year over year. Nationally, home prices were 5.5 percent higher in September, YOY, but those gains haven’t been as robust as the year goes on.

Preowned home sales, compared to 2017, have been flat.

HOME PRICES CLIMB NATIONALLY AND LOCALLY

Nationally, home prices have climbed more than 15 percent year over year, First American’s Real House Price Index revealed this month.

That increase is a signal that affordability will continue to be a problem, even in Dallas, where the RHPI hovers at about 20 percent.

If those numbers seem vastly different from other indexes, there’s a good reason. First American’s RHPI measures price changes of single-family properties adjusted for the impact of income and interest rate changes and the impact those things have on consumer buying power over time. It measures both home price increases, but also housing affordability.

DOM REMAINS UNCHANGED FOR DALLAS-FORT WORTH

Days on Market for new home sales in the area remained unchanged in October, the HomesUSA Index showed. The average new home sales price increased for the second month in a row, but DOM remained at 114.46 days.

The average new home price in Dallas-Fort Worth was $374,871 in October, up from $371,985 in September, the company reported.

Total new home sales in October were down slightly from 1,339 in September to 1,337 in October. Statewide, the HomesUSA.com New Home Sales Index showed the DOM for new home sales increased to 112.81 days in October.

“Dallas-Ft. Worth area builders are still on track to set another record in new home sales,” said Ben Caballero, owner of HomesUSA.com.

The average price of a new home increased in October. In Dallas-Fort Worth, the average new home price was up to $374,871 in October, from $371,985 the month before. Statewide, the average new home price was up to $357,547 in October, from $355,821 in September.

“Dallas-Ft. Worth is a machine when it comes to building new homes,” said Caballero. “Higher home prices have not stopped buyers from buying new homes in Dallas-Ft. Worth.”