Index: Home Prices Down 10.8%

Home prices declined 10.8% nationally over the past 12 months, a rate that has remained in the 10%-11% range in the past four months, according to the latest LoanPerformance Home Price Index. "We are cautiously optimistic that stabilization in the decline rate is the first indicator that house price declines may not be getting any worse nationally," said Mark Fleming, chief economist of First American CoreLogic, the Santa Ana, Calif.-based company that compiles the index. He said 36 states are experiencing price declines, and that homes in California, Nevada, Arizona, and Florida are depreciating at an annualized rate of 18% or more. Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario (Calif.) headed the index's list of top metropolitan areas with 12-month home price declines with a 25.3% decrease. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale ranked second with a 25.2% decline, and Oakland-Fremont-Hayward (Calif.) finished third at 23.9%. The LoanPerformance HPI provides a comprehensive set of monthly home price indices and median sales prices covering 7,544 ZIP codes and 677 counties in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, the company said. First American CoreLogic can be found online at http://www.facorelogic.com.