Case-Shiller index: Home prices rise in October

Home prices in South Florida posted solid returns in October, outpacing other major metropolitan areas across the nation, a new report shows.

Prices in Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties increased 6.5 percent compared with a year earlier, according to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller index.

Only five of the 19 other metro areas tracked nationally by the index had higher increases than South Florida: Seattle (10.7 percent), Portland, Ore. (10.3) Denver (8.3), Dallas (8.1) and Tampa (7.8).

David M. Blitzer, chairman of the index committee, said in a statement that rising mortgage rates are starting to affect affordability, though other factors favor a robust housing market.

“With the high consumer confidence numbers and low unemployment rate, affordability trends do not suggest an immediate reversal in home price trends,” he said. “Nevertheless, home prices cannot rise faster than incomes and inflation indefinitely.”

Other metros tracked by the index are: Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, New York, Phoenix, San Diego, San Francisco and Washington, D.C.

Analysts consider Case-Shiller a leading measure of national home values because the index analyzes the price of the same house over time. However, the index lags local Realtor board data by one month.

South Florida home sales have been more sluggish this year than last, but prices continue to rise, primarily because of a shortage of homes on the market.

“It’s virtually impossible to find something of a decent size up to $650,000,” said Beverly Rothstein, a real estate agent in Broward and Palm Beach counties.

Larry Revier, an agent in Fort Lauderdale, was concerned that a sharp decline in home showings earlier this year was an indication that the market was softening.

But he said he’s noticed a change for the better in South Florida in recent weeks, even though the end of the year typically is a slow time for housing.

“Everybody just felt this shroud prior to the election, but now there is a new energy,” he said.

JOE RAEDLE/GETTY IMAGES Interest rates for home loans have climbed to nearly 4 percent in Miami since the presidential election.