Home prices rose 11.8% in November, compared with the same month a year ago, for a 21st consecutive monthly year-over-year gain, according to research firm CoreLogic. Home prices rose 0.1% from October to November. The data include sales of distressed properties, and the index is a non-seasonally adjusted three-month weighted average.

Excluding distressed sales, November prices rose 0.3% compared with October, and the year-over-year price rose by 10.4%. Home prices remain 17.6% below their April 2006 peak when distressed sales are counted, and 13.3% below the peak when distressed sales are excluded.

In the month of November, homebuilder stocks peaked late in the month before sliding a bit. Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL) posted a monthly gain of about 3.7%, PulteGroup Inc. (NYSE: PHM) rose 6.3% and D.R. Horton Inc. (NYSE: DHI) posted a monthly gain of 4.9%. Homebuilding stock gains once more outpaced home improvement stock gains. Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) was up about 3.6% and Lowe’s Companies Inc. (NYSE: LOW) saw its stock price slip by 4.6%.

CoreLogic expects December housing prices to rise by 11.5% year-over-year and to drop by 0.1% month-over-month. Excluding distressed sales, CoreLogic’s year-over-year increase for December is forecast at 10.6% and the month-over-month estimate is forecast to rise by 0.2%.

CoreLogic executives noted:

Our pending [house price index] projects that home prices will grow by 11.5 percent for the full year 2013. That will make 2013 the best year for home-price appreciation since 2005. … The outlook for 2014 looks a bit less robust as regulatory complexities and tight credit can be expected to cool the housing market.

Including distressed sales, November year-over-year home prices rose the most in Nevada (prices up 25.3%), California (21.3%), Michigan (14.4%), Arizona (13.5%) and Georgia (13.3%). The states with the smallest gains were Arkansas (-1.1%), New Mexico (0.3%), Mississippi (0.7%), Kentucky (0.8%) and Vermont (1.4%). Only Arkansas experienced a year-over-year price decline in November, and 21 states and the District of Columbia are now within 10% of their home price peaks.

Home price gains have definitely tapered off month-over-month, although yearly gains continue strong. There shouldn’t be much month-over-month change in home prices for the next few months, and we may even begin to see declines from the strong numbers posted in early 2013.

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.