National home prices accelerated in August. The S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index rose a seasonally adjusted 0.5% during the three-months ending in August. It’s up 5.9% compared to the same period a year ago. Case-Shiller’s broader national index rose 6.1% for the year in August, up from 5.9%. The national index surpassed the high it previously set at the peak of the housing bubble last year, and is now 5.6% higher. The 20-city index is 1.8% shy of its 2006 peak. Annual price gains in August ranged from 3.4% growth in Washington DC to 13.2% in Seattle. Las Vegas was second, at 8.6%. Portland was up only 0.1% for the month but tied for fourth at 7.2% for the year.
The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index rose to 125.9 in October from an upwardly revised 120.6 in September. That’s the best reading since December 2000. Economists expected 121.3. Both the present situation and expectations. The percentage of consumers stating jobs are “plentiful” increased from 32.7% to 36.3%, while those claiming jobs are “hard to get” fell from 18.0% to 17.5%.
Serving the West Side first, I am Bill Roller of BR Capital for 1360 KUIK.
