US home prices surged in August at near-record pace

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER
AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. home prices jumped in August by a near-record amount from a year earlier, as Americans eager to buy a home drove up prices on a dwindling number of properties. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-city home price index soared 19.7% in August compared with a year ago, just below July’s 20% jump, which was the largest gain on records dating back to 2000. Home prices are now at all-time highs in all 20 cities in the index.