Home Prices Fall a Record 11.4%, Index Says

New York, NY, March 25, 2008-- U.S. home prices fell 11.4 percent in January, their steepest drop since data was first collected in 1987, according to Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index.

Prices have been growing more slowly or dropping for 19 consecutive months in 10 major metropolitan areas the index tracks. The 20-city composite index also 10.7 percent in January from a year ago. That makes it the first time both indexes dropped by double-digit percentages.

"Home prices continue to fall, decelerate and reach record lows across the nation," said David Blitzer, index committee chairman at S&P. "No markets seem to be completely immune from the housing crisis."

The worst performing markets are Las Vegas and Miami, which tied for worst off as they both reported 19.3 percent drops.

Charlotte, N.C. was the only gainer, with a 1.8 percent rise in January.