US home prices, rents rises

National home values in the United States increased to an average of $187,300 in July, the 48th month in row of appreciating values, according to the index report from real estate firm Zillow. Home values have risen by five per cent over the past year and have been consistently climbing since August 2012, but still remain 4.7 per cent below the peak of April 2007 when the median home value was $196,600. The index report shows that Portland, Dallas and Denver reported the highest year on year home value appreciation among the 35 largest metros across the country. In Portland, home values rose almost 15 per cent to a median value of $334,900 while in Dallas and Denver prices were up 11.9 per cent and 11.3 per cent respectively. In notoriously expensive San Francisco, however, home values have been slowing down since the beginning of the year. In January, home values were up almost 12 per cent year on year and are now appreciating at about half that pace, up 6.6 per cent over the last 12 months. ‘The consistent rise in home values that we've been seeing for the past four years masks a number of region specific trends that have taken place over the past few months,’ said Zillow chief economist Svenja Gudell