(Reuters) - Single-family home prices rose in September for an eighth straight month in a further sign that the housing market is on the mend, a closely watched survey showed on Tuesday.
The S&P/Case Shiller composite index of 20 metropolitan areas gained 0.4 percent in September on a seasonally adjusted basis, in line with economists' forecasts. The index's eighth month of gains on a seasonally adjusted basis is the longest since prices bounced in 2009 after the government unleashed stimulus measures following the market's collapse the previous year.
"This is the positive trend that prices have been on for the past year. The housing sector continues to recover," said Peter Hooper, global chief economist at Deutsche Bank.
Prices in the 20 cities rose 3.0 percent year over year, just topping expectations for a rise of 2.9 percent.
"In September's report all three headline composites and 17 of the 20 cities gained over their levels of a year ago," David Blitzer, chairman of the index committee at Standard & Poor's, said in a statement.
