Single family home prices on the rise

The prices of existing single-family homes in Idaho rose 15 percent in the past year, according to data from the Federal Housing Finance Agency released Thursday. Idaho had the fourth-highest rate of appreciation from the first quarter of 2012 to the first quarter of 2013, according to the FHFA's House Price Index. Only Nevada, Arizona and California had higher rates. Nationally, home prices jumped 6.7 percent over the same time period.

"The FHFA index further reinforces that Idaho's economy and housing markets have stabilized and are improving," said Idaho Housing and Finance Association President Gerald M. Hunter.

The Boise/Nampa metropolitan area saw the biggest yearly upturn in Idaho - 10.17 percent - and ranked fifth in the nation. Coeur d'Alene (1.55 percent), Pocatello (1.23 percent) and Idaho Falls (.57 percent) also saw small upticks. Lewiston, where home prices dipped .06 percent, was the only area in Idaho where home prices fell since the first quarter of 2012.

The FHFA House Price Index is calculated using the purchase prices of homes with mortgages that have been sold to or guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. "The value of the FHFA index is that it uses repeat-sales data obtained from Idaho-specific, single-family properties, which better reflects the trends we see in our communities," Hunter said.