Hawaii home prices are rising at the second-highest rate in the nation, according to a new national study that confirms the boom under way in the local housing market.

Hawaii home prices rose 13.2 percent in October from a year ago, analytics firm CoreLogic reported Tuesday, second only to Arizona’s 21.3 percent increase.

“Properties are selling at asking price or, in some cases, above,” said Marshall C. Mower, a partner with Prudential Locations LLC.

In certain neighborhoods you are seeing multiple buyers and multiple offers, he said. Metro Hono­lulu, between Salt Lake and Kaimuki, is one of the hotter areas, Mower added.

Nationally, home prices rose 6.3 percent in October compared with a year ago, the largest yearly gain since July 2006, CoreLogic said. Home prices increased in 45 states in October. Of 100 large metro areas, only 17 reported price declines.

Steady price increases are helping fuel a comeback in the once-battered housing market. They encourage more homeowners to sell their homes, and they entice would-be buyers to purchase homes before prices rise further.

It’s an opportune time for sellers because demand is high and inventory is low, and it’s an opportune time for buyers because interest rates are low, said Mower.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage dipped last week to 3.31 percent, the lowest on records dating back to 1971, according to mortgage buyer Freddie Mac, while rents in many cities are rising. That makes home buying more affordable, pushing up demand.

And more people are looking to buy or rent a home after living with relatives or friends during and immediately after the Great Recession.

At the same time, the number of available homes is at the lowest level in 10 years, according to the National Association of Realtors. The combination of low inventory and rising demand pushes up prices.

The CoreLogic study was consistent with the trend in housing prices as reported by the Hono­lulu Board of Realtors, although the local numbers show a more modest increase.

Last month the Board of Realtors said the median price for single-family homes on Oahu in October was $625,000, up 7.9 percent from $579,000 a year earlier. This year through October, the median is $623,250, up 9.3 percent from $570,000 a year ago.

The number of homes sold has also been rising on Oahu. Through the first 10 months of this year, sales of single-family homes and condos are up about 5.5 percent, the Board of Realtors said.

Rising sales and median prices reinforce the view of local economists and real estate agents that Hawaii’s largest housing market is in a new growth cycle.

The University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization recently forecast that the median price for existing single-family homes will rise 6.8 percent to $670,600 next year, then 7.7 percent to $722,400 in 2014 and then 10.8 percent to $800,100 in 2015.

UHERO forecasts the median condo price will rise 5.9 percent to $333,300 next year, then 7 percent to $356,500 in 2014 and then 8.6 percent to $387,300 in 2015.

Low inventory has created more competition among buyers and put sellers in a better position to obtain higher prices.

CoreLogic, based in Irvine, Calif., said its data from public, contributory and proprietary sources span more than 700 million records across 40 years.

———
The Associated Press contributed to this report.