Black Knight Financial Services [1] released its Home Price Index Report (HPI) for January 2017 on Monday. The report states that U.S. home prices are up 0.1 percent from December, and up 5.4 percent year-over-year. The national HPI was $266,000.
The national HPI is still down from the market peak in June 2006, by 0.3 percent. However, January’s HPI is a 33.5 percent increase from the national trough in January 2012
By state, New York experienced the biggest change in HPI, going up 1.3 percent in January. This is more than double the next highest state, Hawaii, which went up 0.6 percent. Additionally, the New York City metro area was the No. 1 mover according to Black Knight’s data, moving up 1.3 percent like the state level data.
Alabama, however, fared worse. Tuscaloosa, Alabama was the worst performing metro in January, dropping 3.2 percent month-over-month, pushing Alabama down to the worst performing state. In fact, Alabama metros accounted for half of the top 10 worst performing metros in January, including Tuscaloosa, Anniston, Daphne, Gadsden, and Decatur. Statewide, Alabama’s HPI dropped 0.8 percent in January.
Meanwhile, New York accounted for three of the best performing metros, according to Black Knight including New York City, Binghamton, and Buffalo.
New York, along with Massachusetts and Washington, hit new peaks in January. New York peaked this month at an HPI of $369,000, while Massachusetts peaked at $376,000 and Washington at $345,000.
Other states, such as Florida, have home prices still well below their market peak. In January, Florida’s HPI was $296,000, 20.6 percent below its peak in June 2007. Arizona is even further from its peak, at an HPI of $291,000, 21 percent below its market peak in May 2006.
Nine of the 40 largest metros covered by Black Knight data reached new peaks in January: Boston; Columbus Ohio; Dallas; Denver; Kansas City, Missouri; Nashville, Tennessee; Portland, Oregon; San Francisco; and Seattle.