U.S. Home Prices In Across- The- Board Decline (Economic Policy Review)

  Home prices in the top 10 metro areas fell 0.8 percent in December, the largest monthly drop since 1991.

  Economic Policy Review 

  Feb. 27, 2007 -- U.S. home prices fell 0.7 percent in the fourth quarter, the fastest rate since 1992, and are up just 0.4 percent in the past year, according to Standard & Poor's in the inaugural release of the national Case-Shiller price index.

  "Annual changes in home prices are either in decline, flat, or yielding negative returns across all markets," said Robert J. Shiller, chief economist at MacroMarkets LLC, which produces the index for S&P. "All metro areas are showing smaller annual returns than those reported for November."

  Home prices in the top 10 metro areas fell 0.8 percent in December, the largest monthly drop since 1991.

  Home prices in the 20 metro areas fell 0.7 percent in December. Boston and Detroit show the greatest one year decline in prices. They are down 5.1 percent and 5.9 percent, respectively, on a year-over-year basis.

LINK: EconomicPolicyReview.com