Case-Shiller Index Shows Record Quarterly Gain

Home prices rose 6.9 percent in the second quarter, the strongest quarter-quarter gain since the index began in 1987, according to the Case-Shiller National Home Price Index compiled by ""Standard & Poor’s"":http://www.standardandpoors.com (S&P).

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Separately, the monthly 10- and 20-city indices rose 2.2 percent and 2.3 percent respectively in June, S&P reported Tuesday. The 10- and 20-city indices were up 0.1 percent and 0.5 percent in the last year, respectively. The increase marks the first year-over-year gains in the monthly measures since September (20-year) and October (10-year) 2010.

The 10-city index rose to its highest level since September 2011 and the 20-city index to its highest level since August 2011.

Economists had expected the 20-city index to grow 1.4 percent in June and be flat year-over-year.

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Prices improved month-over-month in all 20 cities tracked by Case Shiller, led by a 6.0 percent jump in Detroit, a 4.8 percent increase in Minneapolis, a 4.6 percent improvement in Chicago, and a 4.4 percent gain in Atlanta.

According to the National Association of Realtors, the median price of a single-family home rose 4.7 percent in June while the government report from the Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development showed the median price of a new home fell 3.4 percent in the same month.

Year-over-year, the median price of an existing single-family home was up 7.5 percent in June, according to the NAR.

The price increase in Detroit came in a month in which the unemployment rate in the city jumped to 18.3 percent from 17.6 percent in May although employment increased 2,767 to 279,232. Unemployment shot up 3,165 to 62,398.

Prices rose yearly in 13 of the 20 cities compared with May when prices rose year-over-year in 12 cities led by Phoenix (13.9 percent), Minneapolis (5.7 percent), Miami (34.4 percent), and Denver (4.0 percent).

The steepest year-over-year price drop was in Atlanta (12.1 percent) followed by New York (2.1 percent), Las Vegas (1.8 percent), and Chicago (1.7 percent).

The price index for three cities â€" Denver, Phoenix, and Washington D..C â€" rose to their highest levels since 2008.

Even with the improvement in April, the 10-city price index is down 45.6 percent from its June 2006 peak and the 20-city index is down 44.5 percent from its July 2006 high point.