OFHEO: Home Price Appreciation Slowed in 3Q

House price appreciation slowed considerably in the third quarter, with five states and 15 cities in California experiencing actual price declines, according to the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight.Nationally, house prices increased at a 3.45% annual rate in the third quarter, down from 5.10% in the second quarter and 13.20% in the third quarter of 2005. "House prices continued to rise through the third quarter in most of the country, but generally at only low or moderate rates," said OFHEO chief economist Patrick Lawler. The OFHEO report points out that New York, Rhode Island, Michigan, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts saw price declines from the second quarter to the third quarter. Meanwhile, 15 of California's 25 major cities experienced price declines, including Sacramento (-0.89%) and San Francisco (-0.21%). OFHEO can be found on the Web at http://www.ofheo.gov.