Home prices rising at slower rate

South Florida up 5.4 percent in April, Case-Shiller Index shows

South Florida remains a home seller’s market, but buyers at least can takesomecomfort in the latest figures from a national housing index released Tuesday.

Prices are still rising across Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties, but the increases are getting smaller, according to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Index.

The tri-county region posted a 5.4 percent gain inApril compared with a year earlier. The annual increase in March was 6 percent, while in February and January prices were up 6.7 percent from a year earlier.

Prices have risen steadily over the past five years but remain about 21 percent below the CaseShiller peak of December 2006.

Strong demand and limited supply have pushed prices higher and put buyers on the defensive. But real estate agents say large price swings aren’t sustainable over the long term.

“We’re not seeing people’s salaries increase dramatically,” said Marta DuPree, an agent for the Keyes Co. in Broward.

“A modest increase is better for the overall real estate market,” added JonKlein, an agent for Real Living 1st Choice Realty in Coral Springs. “You don’t want prices increasing so fast that it takes us into another bubble.”

David M. Blitzer, chairman of the index committee at S&P, said in a statement that he’s not worried about another national housing downturn, citing low levels of household debt and mortgage default rates.

“For the moment, conditions appear favorable for avoiding another crash,” he said.

Seattle had the highest annual increase in April at 12.9 percent, while Portland, Ore., had the second- price gain at 9.3 percent, according to Case-Shiller. The national average was 5.5 percent.

The index tracks prices in 20 major metropolitan areas across the country. It’s considered one of the leading measures of housing values nationally, though it trails local Realtor board figures by one month.

powers@Sun-Sentinel.com, 561-243-6529, Twitter @PaulOwers