House Price Growth Continues to Cool in March, According to First American Data & Analytics Monthly Home Price Index Report

Rhea-AI Summary

First American Data & Analytics released its March 2024 Home Price Index report, showing a +0.9% month-over-month and +6.2% year-over-year increase in house prices. Chief Economist Mark Fleming predicts a 'higher-for-longer' mortgage rate environment will slow price appreciation. Starter home prices are rising, with Nassau County, N.Y., Pittsburgh, Miami, and New York seeing over 10% year-over-year increases.

—A ‘higher-for-longer’ mortgage rate environment should help to further slow house price appreciation, says Chief Economist Mark Fleming—

SANTA ANA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- First American Data & Analytics, a leading national provider of property-centric information, risk management and valuation solutions and a division of First American Financial Corporation (NYSE: FAF), today released its March 2024 Home Price Index (HPI) report. The report tracks home price changes less than four weeks behind real time at the national, state and metropolitan (Core-Based Statistical Area) levels and includes metropolitan price tiers that segment sale transactions into starter, mid and luxury tiers. The full report can be found here.

March¹ National House Price Index

First American Data & Analytics’ National Non-Seasonally Adjusted (NSA) HPI
Metric	Change in HPI
February-March 2024 (month over month)	+0.9 percent
March 2023-March 2024 (year over year)	+6.2 percent

Highlights

• House prices nationally are now 52 percent higher compared to pre-pandemic levels (February 2020).
• House price growth reported in last month’s HPI for January 2024 to February 2024 was revised up 0.3 percentage points, from 0.7 percent to 1.0 percent.

Chief Economist Analysis:

“Persistent inflation has diminished any optimism that the Federal Reserve may start to cut rates in June, meaning mortgage rates seem more and more likely to remain ‘higher for longer’ this year,” said Mark Fleming, chief economist at First American. “Many sellers will remain on strike keeping a lid on supply. However, as we saw last fall when mortgage rates peaked, demand may also wane. Even though the supply of homes for sale will remain tight, sagging demand should further slow price appreciation in a ‘higher-for-longer’ mortgage rate environment.”

March 2024 Local Market Price Tier Highlights

The First American Data & Analytics HPI segments home price changes at the metropolitan level into three price tiers based on local market sales data: starter tier, which represents home sales prices at the bottom third of the market price distribution; mid-tier, which represents home sales prices in the middle third of the market price distribution; and the luxury tier, which represents home sales prices in the top third of the market price distribution.

“Starter home price appreciation will continue to face upward pressure in a ‘higher-for-longer’ market. Starter homes are the least supplied because it is the market segment most supplied by existing homeowners, who are the most vulnerable to the rate lock-in effect and thus unable or unwilling to list their home for sale to fuel a move-up purchase,” said Fleming. “Starter-tier prices are increasing year over year by more than 10 percent in Nassau County, N.Y., Pittsburgh, Miami and New York.”

March 2024 First American Data & Analytics Price Tier HPI Highlights

Core-Based Statistical Areas (CBSAs) Ranked by Greatest Year-Over-Year Increases in Starter Home HPI
CBSA	Change in Starter Home HPI	Change in Mid-Tier HPI	Change in Luxury HPI
Nassau County, N.Y.	+17.5 percent	+12.0 percent	-1.2 percent
Pittsburgh	+15.7 percent	+7.4 percent	+3.5 percent
Miami	+12.1 percent	+9.1 percent	+9.7 percent
New York	+10.2 percent	+9.6 percent	+2.9 percent
Charlotte, N.C.	+9.7 percent	+5.2 percent	+7.9 percent

Additional March 2024 First American Data & Analytics HPI Highlights

Core-Based Statistical Areas (CBSAs) with Greatest Year-Over-Year Increases in HPI
CBSA	Change in HPI
Anaheim, Calif.	+10.5 percent
Miami	+10.4 percent
San Diego	+9.5 percent
Pittsburgh	+9.0 percent
Cambridge, Mass.	+8.2 percent
There were no CBSAs with a Year-Over-Year Decrease in HPI

HPI data for all 50 states and the largest 30 CBSAs by population is available here.

Next Release

The next release of the First American Data & Analytics House Price Index will take place the week of May 20, 2024.

First American Data & Analytics HPI Methodology

The First American Data & Analytics HPI report measures single-family home prices, including distressed sales, with indices updated monthly beginning in 1980 through the month of the current report. HPI data is provided at the national, state and CBSA levels and includes preliminary index estimates for the month prior to the report (i.e. the preliminary result of July transactions is reported in August). The most recent index results are subject to revision as data from more transactions become available.

The HPI uses a repeat-sales methodology, which measures prices changes for the same property over time using more than 46 million paired transactions to generate the indices. In non-disclosure states, the HPI utilizes a combination of public sales records, MLS sold and active listings, and appraisal data to estimate house prices. This comprehensive approach is particularly effective in areas where there is limited availability of accurate sale prices, such as non-disclosure states. Property type, price and location data are used to create more refined market segment indices. Real Estate-Owned transactions are not included.

Disclaimer

Opinions, estimates, forecasts and other views contained in this page are those of First American’s Chief Economist, do not necessarily represent the views of First American or its management, should not be construed as indicating First American’s business prospects or expected results, and are subject to change without notice. Although the First American Economics team attempts to provide reliable, useful information, it does not guarantee that the information is accurate, current or suitable for any particular purpose. © 2024 by First American. Information from this page may be used with proper attribution.

About First American Data & Analytics

First American Data & Analytics, a division of First American Financial Corporation, is a national provider of property-centric information, risk management and valuation solutions. First American maintains and curates the industry’s largest property and ownership dataset that includes more than 8 billion document images. Its major platforms and products include: DataTree^®, FraudGuard^®, RegsData^®, First American TaxSource™ and ACI^®. Find out more about how First American Data & Analytics powers the real estate, mortgage and title settlement services industries with advanced decisioning solutions at www.FirstAmDNA.com.

About First American

First American Financial Corporation (NYSE: FAF) is a premier provider of title, settlement and risk solutions for real estate transactions. With its combination of financial strength and stability built over more than 130 years, innovative proprietary technologies, and unmatched data assets, the company is leading the digital transformation of its industry. First American also provides data products to the title industry and other third parties; valuation products and services; mortgage subservicing; home warranty products; banking, trust and wealth management services; and other related products and services. With total revenue of $6.0 billion in 2023, the company offers its products and services directly and through its agents throughout the United States and abroad. In 2024, First American was named one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For by Great Place to Work^® and Fortune Magazine for the ninth consecutive year. The company was named one of the 100 Best Workplaces for Innovators by Fast Company in 2023. More information about the company can be found at www.firstam.com.

¹ The most recent index results are subject to revision as data from more transactions become available.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240416452054/en/

Media Contact:

Marcus Ginnaty

Corporate Communications

First American Financial Corporation

(714) 250-3298

Investor Contact:

Craig Barberio

Investor Relations

First American Financial Corporation

(714) 250-5214

Source: First American Data & Analytics

FAQ

What are the key highlights of the March 2024 Home Price Index report by First American Data & Analytics?

The report shows a +0.9% month-over-month and +6.2% year-over-year increase in house prices nationally, with prices now 52% higher than pre-pandemic levels.

What is the Chief Economist Mark Fleming's analysis regarding the current housing market?

Mark Fleming predicts that a 'higher-for-longer' mortgage rate environment will slow down house price appreciation due to persistent inflation and tight supply.

Which areas are experiencing significant year-over-year increases in starter home prices according to the report?

Nassau County, N.Y., Pittsburgh, Miami, and New York are seeing over 10% year-over-year increases in starter home prices.

When is the next release of the First American Data & Analytics House Price Index scheduled?

The next release of the House Price Index is set to take place the week of May 20, 2024.