Case-Shiller Home Price Index, October 2015

Today, Standard & Poor’s (S&P) released October 2015 values for its Case-Shiller Home Price Index, which tracks the prices of existing single-family homes in 20 U.S. metro areas. The index in each metropolitan area extends from a base value of 100 in January 2000. For example, Chicago’s October 2015 index value was 131.40 before seasonal adjustment; this translates to a 31.40 percent appreciation since January 2000 for a typical home in the Chicago market.

• All 20 cities tracked and both composite indices showed positive year-over-year returns. In Chicago, the index increased 1.3 percent from 129.65 in October 2014 to 131.40 in October 2015. This was an improvement over last month’s YOY growth rate of 1.0 percent.
• Chicago was among nine cities that experienced negative monthly rates of change. Chicago’s October 2015 home price level decreased by -0.7 percent from the previous month, also falling behind the 10-City and 20-City Composites’ respective 0.0 and 0.1 percent growth rates.
• In a press release, Standard & Poor’s Index Committee Chairman David M. Blitzer pointed to positive consumer outlook and an uptick in residential construction as positive economic conditions supporting the housing market. He added that, “The latest economic projections published by the Fed following the recent rate increase suggest that the Fed funds rate will be around 2.6% in September 2017 compared to a current rate of about 0.5%. These data suggest that potential home buyers need not fear runaway mortgage interest rates.”

The following charts illustrate home price comparison and trends.

Source: S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices

Note: The full press release and additional data can be found on the S&P website. Values reflect non-seasonally adjusted data, which are typically more appropriate for annual comparisons than monthly ones; however, due to heightened volatility in recent housing values that can skew the seasonal adjustments, S&P recommends using the non-seasonally adjusted numbers, even for month-to-month comparisons.

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