Home Values Rise at Fastest Pace in 12 Years, According to Zillow

National median home values are rising at their fastest pace in 12 years, according to the April Zillow Real Estate Market Report. Over the past year, home values across the country rose 8.7 percent to a median value of $215,600.

Home values have not appreciated this quickly since June 2006, right before the housing bubble bust, when they were appreciating 9 percent annually.

U.S. home values are now higher than they have ever been, and home values in 21 of the 35 largest housing markets have surpassed peak value hit during the height of the housing boom over a decade ago.

"Home values are rising faster than we've seen in a very long time: The spring home shopping season has been a perfect storm of strong demand and tight supply," said Zillow senior economist Aaron Terrazas.

Terrazas said, "Sluggish new construction has exacerbated the supply situation and homes that are hitting the market, are moving very quickly once they do. Americans are also in a spending mood, boosted by recent tax cuts and rising wages. Millennials who long delayed becoming homeowners, are out in force - a shift we're also seeing in softer rent appreciation."

Home values are appreciating the fastest in San Jose, Las Vegas, and Seattle. In San Jose, home values rose 26 percent to a median of $1,263,900. In Las Vegas and Seattle, home values rose 16.5 percent and 13.6 percent, respectively.

Median rent across the nation rose 2.5 percent over the past year to a median payment of $1,449 per month.

Sacramento, Calif., Riverside, Calif., and Las Vegas reported the greatest year-over-year rent appreciation among the 35 largest U.S. metros. In Sacramento and Riverside, median rent rose 7 percent and in Las Vegas, median rent rose 4.5 percent.

April ended with mortgage rates on Zillow at 4.35 percent, after starting the month at 4.20 percent. April mortgage rates peaked toward the end of the month at 4.42 percent, the highest rate since the beginning of 2013, and hit a month low in the first few weeks of the month when rates were at 4.19 percent.

Zillow's real-time mortgage rates are based on thousands of custom mortgage quotes submitted daily to anonymous borrowers on the Zillow Mortgages site and reflect the most recent changes in the market.

Find out more at www.zillow.com.