Southern California home prices outpace those in other major cities

Southern California home prices continued to outpace the national average as well as those in many major cities, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index released Tuesday.

Prices nationally, adjusted for seasonal variation, rose 5.2% in the 12 months ended in March, with the Pacific Northwest and West seeing the biggest gains.

Los Angeles and Orange counties were up 6.5%, down from 6.8% in February and 6.9% in January. San Diego County’s median home price increased 6.2%, lower than the 6.4% increase in February and 6.9% in January.

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Portland had the biggest gains at 12.3%, followed by Seattle at 10.8% and Denver at 10%.

Economists said home prices continue to rise because of improved labor markets and employment rates, low mortgage rates and limited home supplies.

Rising prices tend to affect lower-cost homes the most, driving up prices for first-time homebuyers, Zillow chief economist Svenja Gudell said in a statement.

“The competition is locking out some first-time buyers, who instead are paying record-high rents,” she said. “For homebuyers looking for a home, the luxury market, including the condo market, are the places to find a better selection and even some price cuts as supply outpaces demand.”

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Home prices increased in the 20 metropolitan areas the index studied.

Washington, D.C., had the lowest year-over-year home price increase at 1.5%, followed by Chicago at 1.9%.

Real estate tracker CoreLogic reported two weeks ago that the Los Angeles County median home price in April was $520,000, 5.5% away from its peak level. Orange County tied its all-time high median sale price in April of $645,000, reached nearly nine years ago. The median is the point at which half the homes sold for more and half for less.

The Case-Shiller index is considered the gold standard for measuring and comparing overall big-city housing markets because it tracks repeat sales of identical single-family houses as they turn over through the years.

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phillip.molnar@sduniontribune.com

Molnar writes for the San Diego Union-Tribune.