New York, NY, October 6, 2006—The Economy.com unit of Moody's issued a report predicting that median existing-home house prices will fall 3.6% next year in the U.S., with some areas falling as much as 20%.
Regions most susceptible to sharp house price declines are the southwest coast of Florida, and the metropolitan areas of California, Arizona, Nevada, greater Washington D.C. and Detroit.
Specific numbers: Cape Coral, FL to fall 18.6% from peak, Reno, NV 17.2%, Merced, CA 16.1%, Stockton, CA 15.7%, Sarasota, FL 14%, Naples, FL 13.8%, Tucson, AZ 13.4%, Las Vegas, NV 12.9%, Chico, CA 12.6% and Fresno, CA 12.5%; 11 other metros to suffer double-digit declines.
The report said that prices are likely to keep falling until 2008 or 2009 in some areas.
