S&P: Home Prices Fell Sharply in 2Q

Home prices continued to decline during the second quarter, dropping 3.2% from the level recorded a year earlier, according to the quarterly S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices.The S&P Case-Shiller data showed home prices trending down in its 10-city composite as well as its indices based on 15 and 20 metropolitan areas. Prices were falling in 15 of the 20 metro areas covered by the larger index. "The pullback in the U.S. residential real estate market is showing no signs of slowing down," said Robert Shiller, chief economist at MacroMarkets. He said the second-quarter year-over-year decline is the biggest drop in home prices since the index was started in 1987. Markets posting the biggest year-over-year declines in home values for the second quarter included Detroit (down 11%), Tampa, Fla. (down 7.7%), San Diego (down 7.4%), Washington (down 7.0%), and Phoenix (down 6.6%).