02:53 PM EDT, 03/25/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US home price growth picked up in January, though the annual measure continued to trail the appreciation seen in the first half of 2024, S&P Global ( SPGI ) division S&P Dow Jones Indices said Tuesday.

Nationally, the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Index grew 0.6% sequentially in January after seasonal adjustments, following a 0.5% gain the month prior.

Annually, prices rose 4.1%, faster than the 4% increase in December. Growth accelerated for both the 10- and 20-city composites.

Prices declined 0.7% in the second half of 2024 after jumping 4.8% in the first, said Nicholas Godec, head of fixed income tradables and commodities at S&P Dow Jones Indices.

"Rising mortgage rates throughout the year elevated monthly payment burdens, which, combined with already high home prices, pushed affordability to multi-decade lows in many regions," Godec said. "This likely contributed to subdued activity in the back half of the year, with both buyers and sellers exercising caution."

New York City recorded an annual 7.7% increase in January, the highest among the 20 cities, followed by Chicago and Boston. Tampa fell 1.5%, the only market that posted a year-over-year decline.

Separately, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said home prices increased 0.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis in January, compared with December's upwardly revised growth of 0.5%. Annually, prices rose 4.7%.

Separate government data showed Tuesday that the median price of new houses sold dropped to $414,500 in February from $427,400 the month prior.

Price: 512.62, Change: +8.68, Percent Change: +1.72