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Home Prices Take Record Dive

Key index drops 12.7%; consumer confidence plummets

By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff

Posted Apr 29, 2008 11:24 AM CDT
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(Newser) – A key measure of home prices fell fell 12.7% in February, the biggest decline in its 7 years of existence, and consumer confidence measured this month hit a 5-year low, Bloomberg reports. The S&P/Case-Shiller home price index reflects the crush of foreclosures and resultant tightening of lending standards. “There is no sign of a bottom in the numbers,” said an S&P spokesman.

The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index fell to 62.3 in April, from an upwardly revised 65.9 in March. The index was up at 90.6 as recently as December. Consumers are especially pessimistic about the present situation, the Wall Street Journal reports. Last week the Conference Board released its own grim housing report, showing that supply hasn’t been this high in nearly 30 years.

A realty sign indicating a reduced price stands out a home for sale in south Denver on Sunday, March 23, 2008.
A realty sign indicating a reduced price stands out a home for sale in south Denver on Sunday, March 23, 2008.   (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, file)
A property is offered for sale at reduced price Wednesday, Feb. 13, 2008, in Los Angeles.
A property is offered for sale at reduced price Wednesday, Feb. 13, 2008, in Los Angeles.   (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
A row of realty signs advertise homes for sale in Sausalito, Calif., Monday, April 21, 2008.
A row of realty signs advertise homes for sale in Sausalito, Calif., Monday, April 21, 2008.   (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)
A sign noting a reduction in price tops the sale placard outside an existing home on the market in south Denver in this Feb. 17, 2008 file photo.
A sign noting a reduction in price tops the sale placard outside an existing home on the market in south Denver in this Feb. 17, 2008 file photo.   (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, file)
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Luxury homes doing fine
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housing market • economic indicators • home prices • Case Shiller price index

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