CoreLogic: Home prices climb higher than expected

Dive Brief:

U.S. home prices, including distressed sales, rose 1.3% between December and January and 6.9% between January 2015 and January 2016, CoreLogic reported in its Home Price Index Tuesday.
CoreLogic predicted home prices will increase 0.5% between January and February, and 5.5% between January 2016 and January 2017.
January's 1.3 % price growth was significantly higher than CoreLogic's prediction last month of a slight 0.2% bump.

Dive Insight:

CoreLogic Chief Economist Frank Nothaft said "the contours of the home price recovery are shifting," as Northwest and Rocky Mountain states (Oregon, Colorado, Idaho and Washington) represented four of the top five states for price appreciation.

Anand Nallathambi, president and CEO of CoreLogic, said in a release, "With rates staying low for now and continued solid job and income growth, the spring buying season is shaping up to be a good one."

However, rising home prices have consistently been cited as one of the reasons home sales haven't seen stronger results. Earlier this week, NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said January's decline in pending home sales was likely due to home price growth and a lack of inventory.

And in December, Zillow predicted the housing market in 2016 would be affected by "deteriorating affordability," particularly among young renters and first-time homebuyers.