Home Prices Post Record 4th-Quarter Decline

(AP) - US home prices sank by 19% in January, the sharpest annual rate on record, and the pace continues to accelerate, the AP reports, but there were a handful of battered metro areas where price declines slowed, according to data released today. The tumble taken by the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index of home prices in 20 major cities was the largest since its beginning in 2000; the 10-city index dropped 19.4%, also a new record. More»

Case-Shiller Home Price Index reverses 5 months of gains

(NEWSER) - After five straight months of gains through August, many market watchers had hoped home prices were finally trekking northward for good. No such luck: According to the just-released S&P/Case-Shiller Index, home prices fell in 19 of the nation’s 20 largest cities from September to October, bringing the index 3.4% lower than it was at this time last year. And while prices usually trend downward in the fall, the LA Times believes these figures portend a weak market in 2012. More»

And there's no bottom in sight

(NEWSER) - The housing industry keeps finding new lows: Today's Case-Shiller price index shows that prices fell in the first quarter to the lowest levels since the crash began, reports the Wall Street Journal . The drop of 4.2%, on top of last quarter's 3.6% drop, is evidence of a "double dip in home prices across much of the nation," says an S&P official. The percentage of homeowners, meanwhile, has fallen to 66.4%, on par with levels in 1998, reports the New York Times . That's down from 69.2% in 2004. More»

July numbers up .6% from June, but demand weakening

(AP) - Home prices rose in July for the fourth straight month, but many cities are bracing for declines in the year ahead. The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index increased 0.6% in July from June and 3.2% from a year ago. Twelve cities showed monthly price gains. However, seven cities showed month-over-month declines and the gains in many cities were weaker from the previous month as the boost from government tax credits for homebuyers fades. More»

Prices and mortgage rates are down—a 'winning combination'

(NEWSER) - Today's new stats on housing prices yield one shakable fact amid tons of useless information: If you’re in the market for a house, this could be your moment. “Homes are now cheap,” writes Brett Arends. The combination of a 30% drop in home prices since 2005 and falling mortgage rates means “buying a home now is as cheap as it was in the mid-1990s, when houses were an absolute steal.” More»