Home Prices See Biggest Annual Gain in Seven Years

U.S. single-family home prices jumped in April, racking up their biggest annual gain in seven years in a sign of the growing momentum in the housing recovery, a closely watched survey showed on Tuesday.

The S&P/Case Shiller composite index of 20 metropolitan areas gained 1.7 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis, topping forecasts for 1.2 percent.

Prices in the 20 cities accelerated by 12.1 percent year over year, which was also above expectations and the biggest annual gain since March 2006.

"The recovery is definitely broad based," David Blitzer, chairman of the index committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices, said in a statement.

On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, prices in the 20 cities rose 2.5 percent, the biggest monthly gain in the index's history, the report said.

A tightening of inventory available for sale, fewer foreclosures and buying from investors has helped push prices higher over the past year as the battered housing sector has gotten back on its feet.