12:15 PM EDT, 04/30/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US home prices rose in February sequentially and annually amid gains in both the 10- and 20-city composites, S&P Global (SPGI) division S&P Dow Jones Indices said Tuesday.

Nationally, the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Index increased 0.4% in February after seasonal adjustment, following a 0.3% gain the previous month. The 10- and 20-city composites registered gains of 0.6% each, after both rose 0.2% in January.

Annually, national home prices were up 6.4% in February -- the fastest year-over-year rate since November 2022 -- following 6% growth the previous month, according to the report. The 10-city composite gained 8%, compared with a 7.4% gain in January, while the 20-city gauge accelerated to 7.3% from 6.6%.

"Following last year's decline, US home prices are at or near all-time highs," said Brian Luke, head of commodities, real and digital assets at S&P Dow Jones Indices. "Enthusiasm for potential (Federal Reserve) cuts and lower mortgage rates appears to have supported buyer behavior, driving the 10- and 20- city composites to new highs."

All cities logged gains in annual prices for the third consecutive month, with San Diego, Los Angeles, Washington, DC, and New York "currently at all-time highs," according to Luke. Eighteen markets saw growth on an unadjusted basis in February from January, led by Seattle with a 2.3% rise.

Separately, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said US home prices advanced 1.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis in February, following the previous month's 0.1% dip. The consensus was for a 0.2% rise in a survey compiled by Bloomberg. Annually, home prices climbed 7% in February, the FHFA said.

"All nine census divisions experienced price appreciation over the last 12 months, with New England and Middle Atlantic divisions posting double digit growth," said Anju Vajja, deputy director for FHFA's division of research and statistics.