Home prices are continuing to rise; now mere basis points below the all-time highs for prices, set in 2006. According to the latest data released Tuesday by S&P Dow Jones Indices and CoreLogic, the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index, which covers all nine U.S. census divisions, reported a 5.3% annual gain in August, just off the July 2006 peak.