by Calculated Risk on 9/23/2013 03:33:00 PM

From economist Tom Lawler:

Zillow reported that its “National” Home Value Index for August was up 0.4% from July, and was up 6.6% from last August. Zillow’s HVI is a “hedonic” index, regional and national HVIs are median home value measures (or unit-weighted by the housing stock for which Zillow has “Zestimate”), “monthly” HVIs are three-month moving averages, and the HVIs are seasonally adjusted. Zillow also does not use foreclosure resales in constructing its HVIs.

CR Note: Here is the Zillow release: U.S. Home Values Continue to Surge in August; Pace Expected to Slow as Summer Season Ends

Home values continued their rapid rise in August, climbing 6.6 percent year-over-year to a Zillow Home Value Index of $162,100, the largest annual gain since July 2006. However, signs are emerging that the pace of home value appreciation is beginning to slow in the face of rising mortgage interest rates and increased supply.

National home values have risen or remained flat month-over-month for almost two years, but August marked the third consecutive month in which monthly home values rose more slowly than the month prior. After the pace of monthly home value appreciation peaked for the year at 0.9 percent in May, monthly home value growth slowed to 0.7 percent in June, 0.6 percent in July and 0.4 percent in August.

Of the 382 metro areas for which Zillow releases a HVI to the public, 324 showed a YOY increase in August.

Recently Mark Fleming of CoreLogic and Stan Humphries of Zillow gave presentations on each firm’s home price indexes at a “Lunchtime Data Talk” (“Home Price Indexes: Appreciating the Differences”) at the Urban Institute. The presentation covered index construction, as well as the main differences between a hedonic imputation index, like the Zillow Home Value Index, and a repeat sales index, like the CoreLogic Home Price Index, and slides are available here. A video of the presentation is available here.


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