U.S. Home prices rose in June in all of the 20 cities tracked, according to the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index. Minneapolis recorded one of the biggest one-month gains -- up 4.8 percent from May and 5.7 percent from June 2011.

A report from Standard & Poor's shows Twin Cities home prices fell 0.6 percent in November and were five percent lower than the year before. Searching for a positive spin? The decline here was only half as big as the national drop.

Good news for the local real estate market (unless you are just looking to buy): Minneapolis housing prices jumped 3.7 percent from June to July, according to the closely watched monthly S&P Case-Shiller index. Of the 20 major metros in the index, Minneapolis had the biggest monthly rise. And prices are up 6.4 percent from last year.

Good news for the housing market: The S&P/Case-Shiller home price index rose 2.2 percent in May, beating economists' forecasts, as all 20 of the nation's largest metropolitan areas posted gains from April. And 12 of the 20 cities had higher prices than they did a year ago, suggesting that the improvement is durable, the report said. In Minneapolis, housing prices were up 3.1 percent from April, and up 4.7 percent from last year.

New figures from the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller Home Price Index show Minneapolis-St. Paul area home prices jumped 7.4 percent in August, compared to the same month a year earlier. Nationally prices rose 2 percent from August 2011 levels. MPR notes the Twin Cities housing market has seen year-over-year gains in home prices every month since February.

Foreclosures and short sales made up about half of the home sales in the Twin Cities area by the end of 2011. But even among traditional sales, prices are plunging. The median price fell more than ten percent last year, down to $190,000.

The average home in the metro area is now going for around $149,000. That's about 10 percent lower than a year ago. Foreclosures and short sales, economic fears and budget-minded buyers are keeping prices down despite stronger sales.