Andy Walden reports that home prices are surging to their highest annual growth rate in 15 months despite elevated mortgage rates.

Andy Walden, head of mortgage and housing market research at Intercontinental Exchange, reported that home prices reached their highest annual growth rate in 15 months. The annual growth rate jumped to 1.7% in July, marking the fifth consecutive month of acceleration. This growth occurred despite mortgage rates reaching an 11-month high, with 30-year rates recently ticking above 6.5%. While prices are trending upward, the housing market shows regional variations. Single-family home prices rose 2% year-over-year, while condo prices fell 0.7%. Upstate New York is currently leading the country in price growth, with Rochester posting the strongest growth rate of any major market in over a year. Conversely, Cape Coral, Florida, saw the steepest decline at 3%. Market experts note that while buyers and sellers are moving forward with deals after a period of deferring, high interest rates continue to impact affordability. Although more homes are selling, the increase in sale prices was lower than the rate of inflation and wage growth last month.

Sources