Home Prices Unchanged in March

New York, NY, May 25, 2010--Single-family home prices were flat in March from February, but fell in the first quarter, according to Standard & Poor's/Case Shiller home price indexes.

Prices have rebounded from lows hit during the crisis, but the end of home buyer tax incentives along with mounting foreclosures suggests more weakness, S&P said.

The S&P composite index of 20 metropolitan areas was unchanged in March from February on a seasonally adjusted basis, better than the 0.3% decline forecast.

On an unadjusted basis, prices fell 0.5% in March after a 0.9% February drop, worse than the estimated 0.4% decline.

For the first three months of the year, the national home price index fell 3.2%, unadjusted, compared with a 1% drop in the fourth quarter. The index was up 2%, however, from the same quarter a year ago.

The 20-city index posted a 2.3% annual increase in March, near the 2.4% forecast.

In a separate report, the Federal Housing Finance Agency reported that home prices fell 1.9% in the first quarter compared with the fourth quarter and were down 3.1% compared with a year earlier.

The agency said prices rose 0.3% in March compared with February. The FHFA index is based on repeat sales of homes financed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.