The Case-Shiller Home Price Index, which is considered the “gold standard” for appreciation, showed home prices rose 0.2% from January to February and they were 2% higher when compared to February 2022. This annual reading is a decline from the 3.7% gain reported in January. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) also released their House Price Index, which revealed that home prices rose 0.5% from January to February. This follows the 0.2% monthly gain reported in January. While prices rose 4% from February 2022 to February 2023, this was a decline from the 5.3% annual increase reported in January. These figures differ in part because FHFA’s report measures home price appreciation on single-family homes with conforming loan amounts, which means it most likely represents lower-priced homes. FHFA also does not include cash buyers or jumbo loans.

What’s the bottom line? S&P DJI Managing Director Craig J. Lazzara noted that, “The National Composite, which had declined for seven consecutive months, rose a modest 0.2% in February, and now stands 4.9% below its June 2022 peak.” This is a far cry from a housing crash of 20% that some in the media have been predicting. In addition, February’s monthly increase signals an inflection point, as does the turnaround in some of the hardest hit cities which saw price gains after several months of declines, including among others San Diego (+1.5%), San Francisco (+1%) and Detroit (+0.8%).