First American CoreLogic released of its April 2008 LoanPerformance Home Price Index (HPI). The LoanPerformance HPI provides a comprehensive set of monthly home price indices and median sales prices covering 7,529 ZIP codes, 958 core based statistical areas (CBSA) and 672 counties located in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The indices, which are the most comprehensive available in the industry, are reported to clients five weeks after each full month ends. Based on a yearly analysis, the company reported that 33 states posted declines in the past 12 months.
"Home price declines accelerated in two-thirds of the states already experiencing price declines, while appreciation rates are decelerating in the handful of states with positive appreciation, particularly in Idaho, Utah and Hawaii," said Mark Fleming, CoreLogic's chief economist. "Ohio and Minnesota have separated from other Midwestern states and are declining at the fastest rates within the Midwest. Energy-rich sector states are experiencing the fastest price increases. West Virginia is leading the nation in home price appreciation, followed by Montana, Utah and Texas."
Among the CBSAs that ranked in the top ten losses in the HPI, California and Florida saw the highest numbers. Four areas in both of these states posted the highest losses with Nevada and Arizona rounding out the top ten. The area with the greatest decline in house prices was Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, California with figures down nearly 25 percent. The CBSA of Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale was a close second with losses totaling nearly 24 percent.
"On a year-ago basis, four of the top six large CBSAs for home price appreciation are in Texas," Fleming added. "Although declines are occurring in a majority of the states, over two-thirds of all 958 CBSAs are experiencing nominal increases. Among large CBSAs, St. Louis, Miami and Los Angeles have suffered the largest acceleration in home price declines so far this year."
In addition, updated LoanPerformance HPI data through mid-May2008 is also available, providing clients with an early snapshot of trends with only a three-week lag period. Full-month April and through mid-month May 2008 state and top CBSA-level data can be found on CoreLogic's Website.
The LoanPerformance HPI incorporates more than 30 years worth of repeat sales transactions, representing more than 45 million observations sourced from First American CoreLogic's property information database. LoanPerformance HPI provides a multi-tier market evaluation based on price, time between sales, property type and loan type.