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Home prices rose for the third straight month in August, a key ingredient for a broad and sustained housing recovery was reported in an article in SFGate .

The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller home price index of 20 major cities climbed 1 percent from July . The index, released today, show a change in the real estate market with prices rising month-over-month in 15 metro areas since June. San Francisco, Minneapolis and San Diego led the way.

Even with some recovery seen this year, unemployment levels, how existing and future foreclosures are dealt with along with the home buyers tax credit due to expire at the end of next month, could seriously impact the housing market.

Zach Pandl, an economist at Nomura Global Economics, expects prices to fall to the lows reached earlier this year before recovering in early 2010.

“We need to see flat to rising prices in the winter months,” Pandl said. “That would be a very encouraging sign that prices have bottomed out.”

Low prices and mortgage rates combined with the tax credit have spurred sales. Home resales climbed more than 9 percent in September, the largest amount in more than 26 years, the National Association of Realtors said last week.

The real estate market is definitely is a state of flux at the moment with some areas seeing multiple offers and other areas having listings languish on the market.

How the next few months play out in terms of the economy, employment, foreclosures and financing all will play into the market for 2010.