Housing market shows slight improvement

For the first time in almost a year, the average U.S. home price index rose on a month-to-month basis in April, according to a CoreLogic study. The 0.7 percent growth is the first positive movement in the market since the homebuyer tax-credit program ended in the middle of 2010.

"While the economic recovery is still fragile and one data point is not a trend, the month-over-month increase based on April sales activity is a positive sign. This is the first month-over-month increase in the HPI since government support for homebuying was removed, and it provides reason for cautious optimism," said Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic.

As the increase may be a sign that people are beginning to move into new homes and relocate out of rental properties, overall national prices are still down significantly from last year. Prices were down 7.5 percent in April from where they stood just 12 months ago, the study found.

However, list prices in more than 20 cities rose, including San Francisco and San Jose, where economic woes have been further plaguing the market, according to Altos Research. The only cities with a decline were New York and Las Vegas.  

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