Housing Prices Rise, Outpace Other Major Markets for 2012

Housing prices in the region increased 0.9 percent between October and November and have risen 8 percent since November 2011, according to the Standard and Poor's Case-Shiller Home Price Indices.

San Diego's annual jump was well above the national average of the nation's 20 largest real estate markets. The prices climbed at a faster rate for the year in only six other metropolitan areas.

The indices were created by taking the median price of homes in each market in January 2000 and assigning them a value of 100. S&P analysts track the subsequent rise and fall of real estate values.

San Diego's index stood at 163.58 in November, reflecting a 63-percent appreciation over the past 13 years. Prices have jumped at a quicker clip only in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., over the life of the indices.

Nationwide sale prices declined 0.2 percent from October 2012 to November, and a rose 5.5 percent between November 2011 and November 2012.

“Housing is clearly recovering,” said David Blitzer, chairman of the Indices Committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices. “Prices are rising as are both new and existing home sales.”

He said about 5 million homes sold in November, the most for the month in three years. The sale of nearly 400,000 new homes were the most since June 2010, according to Blitzer.

He attributed the monthly national decline to the traditional slow down of real estate sales in the cold-weather months. Even with that, he noted that half the markets showed a small monthly increase.

– City News Service