Dive Brief:

• The median price of a home, including new and existing houses, in the third quarter of this year was 12.5% more than the same quarter of 2012, standing at $207,300.
• The price gains, which happened in 144 of 163 metros areas, represented the biggest year-over-year percentage increase since the fourth quarter of 2005.
• The National Association of Realtors, which published the figures, said it thinks prices and mortgage interest rates will keep the quarterly increases to single digits in 2014.

Dive Insight:

While the higher prices are good for the clients of selling real estate agents, having the biggest increase in eight years is bound to fuel the always-present worries about a new bubble. Comments from the Realtors' chief economist, Lawrence Yun, seemed intended to reassure observers that prices are not riding a skyrocket, and the group made a point of saying that most buyers in most metro areas can afford homes.