Home Prices Continue to Tumble

New York, NY, November 27, 2007 — U.S. home prices fell 4.5% in the third quarter from a year earlier, according to Standard & Poor’s/Case-Schiller quarterly index. It’s another sign that the housing slump shows no signs of a bottom.

The index also showed that prices fell 1.7% from the previous three-month period, the largest quarter-to-quarter decline in the index's history.

The index tracks prices of existing single-family homes across the nation compared with a year earlier.

Only five metro areas - Atlanta, Charlotte, N.C., Dallas, Portland, Ore., and Seattle - showed an increase in prices, but S&P noted that the pace of the rise is decelerating.

Tampa and Miami led the index with the greatest year-over-year declines at 11.1% and 10%, respectively. It also showed drops in San Diego of 9.6%; Detroit, 9.6%; Las Vegas, 9%; Phoenix, 8.8%; and Los Angeles, 7%.