Most home price measures increased in July, though new home prices weakened slightly. NAR's median price measure showed weakness in July and August, possibly due to the end of the peak buying season and changing home mix. Over the year, home prices are down slightly but the decline is small, especially excluding distressed sales. Low new construction and little new home activity cause volatility in new home price data. Distressed sales, which hold back prices, comprise around 30% of sales, down from 40% earlier in the year, and this should help support price increases. Stable to declining inventories and rising apartment rents relative to affordable home prices make buying attractive.

1. Home Price Monitor September 2011 National Association of REALTORS® Research Division Cutting Through the Noise: Various Home Price Measure

4. Home Prices Sources: NAR, Case-Shiller, CoreLogic, FHFA, Census, HAVER

5. Home Price Data – Year over Year Change Sources: NAR, Case-Shiller, CoreLogic, FHFA, Census, HAVER

6. Home Price Changes *All data are not seasonally adjusted. Monthly changes should typically be computed only for Seasonally Adjusted (SA) data. Because these change rates are often covered in the media regardless of their suitability for analysis, they are presented here but should be used with caution. Annual (yr-over-yr) changes computed for Not Seasonally Adjusted (NSA) data give a measure that is not affected by seasonal fluctuations. Sources: NAR, Case-Shiller, CoreLogic, FHFA, Census, HAVER

7. Spread of Existing Home Price Changes Year over Year Sources: NAR, Case-Shiller, CoreLogic, FHFA, HAVER

8. Supply and Demand Factors – Inventory Sources: NAR

9. Supply – New Housing Starts and Permits Sources: Census

10. Underlying Demand – Job Growth and Hires Sources: BLS

11. Potential Job Growth – Openings Sources: BLS

12. Housing Affordability Sources: NAR

13. About the Price Data Series Sources: NAR, Case-Shiller, CoreLogic, FHFA, Census, HAVER