Home prices rose 1.8% in March on a sequential basis and 0.6% during the first quarter, according to an index created by the Federal Housing Finance Agency.
The FHFA HPI, however, only tracks homes financed with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans.
Prices fell 0.5% in January on a seasonally adjusted annual basis but rose 0.3% in February, the agency reported.
“Consistent with other housing market indicators, the FHFA HPI showed stronger house prices in the first quarter, most notably in March,” said FHFA economist Andrew Leventis.
“Increased affordability and a somewhat smaller inventory of homes for sale are positively impacting house prices,” he added.
House prices rose in all nine regions of the U.S. tracked by the GSE regulator.
The Pacific region posted the largest month-over-month gain with a 3.2% price hike in March. The New England region posted the smallest gain as prices edged up 0.7% in March.
