US real estate price increase exceeds inflation with 5.4% annual increase

U.S. home price growth slowed in June as buyers withdrew from the market but the number of homes on offer began to rise.

According to data from S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller, prices rose 5.4 percent nationally compared to a year earlier. In May, the annual increase was 5.9 percent.

Although the number of listings is increasing, home seekers are still struggling to find affordable properties. But because of high mortgage rates, there aren't enough buyers in the market to create the competition that would drive prices up even more significantly. The Case-Shiller index for June tracks a three-month period beginning in April, when the cost of 30-year loans was mostly around 7%.

The price data shows “above-trend real price action when accounting for inflation,” Brian Luke, head of commodities, real and digital assets at S&P Dow Jones Indices, said in a statement on Tuesday. “Real estate prices and inflation continue to play a role in the political agenda ahead of election season.”

While both home price increases and inflation have slowed, “the gap between the two is wider than the historical average, with the national index averaging 2.8% higher than the consumer price index,” Luke said. “That's a full percentage point above the 50-year average.”

The Federal Reserve is expected to begin cutting its benchmark interest rate next month, which could potentially put some downward pressure on mortgage costs, but many economists believe it will take much steeper declines to persuade hesitant buyers and sellers to buy.

In 20 cities, prices rose 6.5 percent year-over-year, compared to an annual increase of 6.9 percent in May. New York saw the highest increase in June, followed by San Diego and Las Vegas at 8.7 percent and 8.5 percent, respectively.