Whatcom home values rise 6 percent in third quarter

Whatcom County home values continue to steadily rise, according to a new federal report.

Local home values appreciated 6 percent in the third quarter of 2015 compared to a year earlier, according to data from the Federal Housing Finance Agency. It’s the fifth consecutive quarter that Whatcom County has posted similar increases.

In the past five years, Whatcom County’s home values have risen 8.2 percent.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency uses home purchases and refinance data from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to come up with its all-transactions home price index for metro areas.

Across the U.S., home values appreciated 5.7 percent in the past year.

In Washington state, values appreciated 9.4 percent this past year, according to the report, which used purchase-only data for the state index. That rise ranked sixth highest in the U.S.

Seattle-area home appreciation remained strong, rising 9.7 percent. Seattle’s five-year appreciation is at 24.2 percent.

The strong home value appreciation across the U.S. happened when experts expected it to slow down, according to FHFA economist Andrew Leventis.

“The long-anticipated slowdown in home price appreciation did not occur in the third quarter,” said Leventis in a news release accompanying the data. “The factors that have contributed to extraordinary price growth over the last few years — low interest rates, tight inventories, strong buyer confidence, and improving income growth — continued to drive prices upward in much of the country. However, as prices continue to rise, reduced affordability will be a stronger market headwind.”

This story was originally published November 26, 2015 at 12:10 PM with the headline "Whatcom home values rise 6 percent in third quarter."