US home prices fall for 8th month in February

NEW YORK: Single-family home prices in the United States fell for an eighth straight month in February, inching closer to an April 2009 trough, a closely watched survey said on Tuesday, Apr 26.

The S&P/Case Shiller composite index of 20 metropolitan areas declined 0.2% in February from January on a seasonally adjusted basis, slightly better than economists' median forecast for a drop of 0.3%.

The 20-city composite index was at 139.27, holding just a hair above its 2009 low of 139.26. Average home prices across the US are back to levels where they were in the summer of 2003.

Prices in the 20 cities have fallen 3.3% year-on-year, in line with expectations.

"There is very little, if any, good news about housing. Prices continue to weaken, trends in sales and construction are disappointing," said David Blitzer, chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Indices, in a statement.

"Recent data on existing-home sales, housing starts, foreclosure activity and employment confirm that we are still in a slow recovery."

The glut of houses up for sale has kept prices low and the market has struggled to regain traction since a homebuyer tax credit expired last spring.

Other data in the last week has suggested some stabilisation in the market with sales of new and existing homes rising in March.

Financial markets were unchanged by the Case-Shiller data on Tuesday, with US stock index futures pointing to a higher open with investors focused on earnings from major companies. — Reuters