Housing on upswing?

Average home prices in the Chicago area rose 2.7 percent in July from June, but dipped 0.9 percent from July 2011, the latest Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller home price index shows.

The 10-city composite rose 1.5 percent from June and the 20-city composite rose 1.6 percent.

Year-over-year, the 10-city composite edged up 0.6 percent and the 20-city composite rose 1.2 percent.

Chicago was among 15 cities in the 20-city composite that posted better annual returns in July compared to June. But Chicago also was one of only four metropolitan areas to post a year-over-year decline.

For the third straight month, all 20 metropolitan areas and both composites posted positive monthly gains.

“The positive news

in both the monthly and annual rates of change in home prices over the past few months signals a possible recovery in the housing market,” David Blitzer, chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices, said in a statement.

The news came the same day the Conference Board said U.S. consumer confidence jumped this month to the highest level since February, bolstered by a brighter hiring outlook. The Conference Board said Tuesday that its Consumer Confidence Index rose to 70.3. That’s up from 61.3 in August, which was revised higher.

Last week, the Illinois Association of Realtors reported sales of existing homes in the Chicago area jumped 28.5 percent in August from a year earlier, hitting the highest level in more than five years. But the median price fell 3.8 percent to $170,000. In the city of Chicago, sales rose 23.6 percent, and the median price rose 3.9 percent.