New real estate numbers from the latest Standard & Poor's Case-Shiller home price index, which tracks 20 major U.S. metro areas, show single-family home prices continue their recovery in the Twin Cities, the Star Tribune reports.

October’s prices were 9.2 percent higher than the same month a year ago. The Minneapolis-St. Paul area was among the strongest markets. Only Phoenix and Detroit grew faster.

"Our inventory is so low and buyer demand is so strong that this is going to be a very healthy winter," Aaron Dickinson, a sales agent with Edina Realty, told the Minneapolis-based newspaper.

Nationally, prices increased 4.3 percent in October compared to 12 months ago, USA Today reports. Only Chicago and New York saw declines.

Click here, for Case-Shiller's news release.

The Commerce Department says sales of new U.S. homes jumped 4.4 percent in November -- the highest level since April 2010, Fox Business News reports.

According to the Minnesota Association of Realtors, home sales grew 8 percent in October from last year, with 7,662 closings in Minnesota. The median price of those closings was up 9.4 percent from last year to $152,000.

Twin Cities home prices also ticked upward for the ninth month in a row last month. The median sales price hit $173,000, a 16.9 percent increase from November of last year.