Home prices in 20 US cities declined 18.2 per cent in November from a year earlier, the fastest drop on record, as foreclosures climbed and sales sank.
The decrease in the S&P/Case-Shiller index was in line with forecasts and followed an 18.1 per cent drop in October.
The gauge has fallen started falling in January 2007, and year-over-year records began in 2001.
Record foreclosures have contributed to more than $1 trillion in losses worldwide that have prompted banks to shut off access to credit. While plunging values have made homes more affordable, they have also hurt household wealth, contributing to a slump in spending that's likely to continue for the first half of the year.
"The decline has accelerated over the past few months due to the increase in deeply discounted foreclosure sales," Michelle Meyer, an economist at Barclays Capital in New York, said before the report.
"The decline in the housing market worsened markedly at the end of last year."
Compared with a year earlier, all areas in the 20-city survey showed a decrease in prices in November, led by a 33 per cent drop in Phoenix and a 32 per cent
decline in Las Vegas.
"The freefall in residential real estate continued through November," David Blitzer, chairman of the index committee at S&P, said in a statement. "Overall, more than half of the metro areas had record annual declines."
The 20-city index is down 25 per cent from its 2006 peak. Eleven of the 20 metropolitan areas showed record declines in the year ended in November, and eight showed the biggest month-to- month decrease on record.
Home prices decreased 2.2 in November from the prior month, matching the October decrease, the report showed.
Bloomberg