Housing Markets Continued Improvement in August: Freddie

Housing markets across the U.S. continue to gradually improve, according to Freddie Mac.

The national index that Freddie Mac developed to measure the health of housing markets rose to 81.2, at the end of August. That was a 0.27% increase from July, and a 2.54% increase from three months earlier.

"We expect home sales to remain strong," Len Kiefer, deputy chief economist, said in a news release. "Low mortgage rates are fueling the recovery across the country."

"Buoyed by strong employment growth, housing supply is struggling to keep pace with demand, which is driving house prices higher," Kiefer said.

Freddie Mac's Multi-Indicator Market Index measures the stability of the housing market nationwide, as well as the housing market in 50 states and the District of Columbia, and the 100 largest metro markets.

According to the latest index, 29 states and the District of Columbia had values within a stable range, as of the end of August. North Dakota had the highest value, followed by the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Montana and Utah.

Fresno, Calif., had the highest index value among metro areas, followed by Austin, Texas; Honolulu, Salt Lake City and Los Angeles.