Home prices in the Portland-Vancouver area rose by 1.1 percent in March, exceeding the 20-city average of 0.9 percent noted in the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller home price index that was released Tuesday.
Portland metro prices are up about 6.9 percent from one year ago, Case-Shiller reported, compared to the 20-city increase of 5 percent. March was the 35th straight month of year-over-year increases in the 20-city average. San Francisco, Denver, and Dallas reported the highest one-year gains.
David Blitzer, managing director and chairman of the Index Committee for S&P Dow Jones Indices, said the strong housing market raises some concerns about a possible housing market bubble. But Blitzer said a cooling process is likely, given that prices are rising more quickly than personal income or wages, narrowing the pool of future buyers.
“I would describe this as a rebound in home prices, not bubble and not a reason to be fearful,” he said.
