By Shaina Mishkin
Home price gains likely inched up in February, according to estimates for a closely watched gauge that is due on Tuesday. But whether you notice prices ramping up or dropping this spring depends on where you live.
Home price changes have been tepid over the past year, according to S&P Cotality Case-Shiller Home Price Indices data. In January, the Case-Shiller index tracking prices in 20 of the nation's largest metropolitan areas was 1.2% higher from one year prior, its slowest gain since mid-2023.
February data is expected on Tuesday; economists foresee prices in the 20-city S&P Cotality Case-Shiller index rising 1.3% from one year prior, a slightly faster increase, according to FactSet estimates.
The index is closely watched for its methodology, which is designed to measure home price fluctuations regardless of factors, such as size or type, that can influence price. The March reading of the index isn't due until May 26.
More recent, though less comprehensive, data illustrate a spring homebuying season off to an uneven start as variations in demand and supply drive prices in different directions.
To identify the places where prices in March changed the most year-over-year, Barron's evaluated Realtor.com listing data for the website's 100 largest U.S. metropolitan areas. We examined price changes on a per-square foot basis, to control for differences in the size of homes listed.
( News Corp, which owns Barron's publisher Dow Jones, also runs Realtor.com through its Move subsidiary.)
The data show a strong geographic split between the areas with the biggest home listing price increases and declines. A home can sell for more or less than its starting price, but trends in the data can offer buyers and sellers clues on their local housing market dynamics.
Prices per square foot rose the most in Providence, R.I., with an increase of just under 10% compared with March 2025. Close behind were Allentown, Penn., and Rochester, N.Y., where listing prices per square foot rose 9% and 8.2%, respectively.
Prices in Austin, Tex., experienced the greatest per-square-foot drop, with a median decline of 7.1%. Cape Coral, Fla., and Memphis, Tenn., saw the second and third greatest per-square-foot declines, respectively falling 6.9% and 6.3% from one year prior.
Write to Shaina Mishkin at shaina.mishkin@dowjones.com
This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 25, 2026 15:53 ET (19:53 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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