House Prices Fall in September, Up Over 2009

New York, NY, Nov. 30, 2010 -- The prices of single-family homes  fell a non-seasonally adjusted 0.7% in September, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index.

Prices have moved up 0.6% in the past year, down from 1.7% in August. This is the fourth consecutive month where annual growth rates moderated from the prior month's pace, confirming a "clear deceleration in home price returns," S&P said.

Home prices decreased in 18 of the 20 metropolitan areas tracked by Case-Shiller in September compared with August.

The gauge fell 0.8% in September from the prior month after adjusting for seasonal variations, the biggest drop since April 2009, following an August decrease of 0.5%.

Nationally, prices decreased 1.5% in the third quarter from the same time last year and were down 2% from the previous three months.

Fifteen of the 20 cities in the S&P/Case-Shiller index showed a year-over-year decline.

“Another weak report,” David Blitzer, chairman of the index committee at S&P, said in a statement.

“The national economy is certainly the number one issue for housing. Additionally, there is a large supply of houses on the market and further, hidden, supply due to delinquent mortgages, pending foreclosures or vacant homes.”