Home prices keep falling in February
Prices in L.A. and Orange County drop 19.4% from the same month in 2007, one of the biggest decreases in the nation, an index shows.
Los Angeles and Orange County home prices were down 19.4% in February from a year ago, among the sharpest drops in the nation, according to an index released today.
That compares with a 12.7% overall drop among 20 metropolitan areas measured by the Standard and Poors/Case-Shiller Home Price Index.
Las Vegas showed the most severe year-over-year decline, 22.8%, followed by Miami (21.7%), Phoenix (20.8%), Los Angeles-Orange County (19.4%), San Diego (19.2%), Tampa (17.5%) and San Francisco (17.2%).
"There is no sign of a bottom in the numbers," said David M. Blitzer, chairman of Standard and Poors' index committee.
Charlotte was the only metro area to show an increase, 1.5%.
The index of 20 metro areas has now fallen 14.8% from its summer 2006 peak.
Yale economist Robert Shiller, one of the index's creators, said earlier this month that home prices could fall 30% from their peak.
The Case-Shiller index compares the latest sales of detached houses to previous sales, and accounts for factors such as remodeling that might affect a house's sale price over time. It excludes foreclosures. From those data, an index score is created to show price changes.
The index has a base value of 100 for January 2000. The February 2008 20-city index was 175.94.
Median sales prices compiled by La Jolla-based DataQuick Information Systems showed comparable declines. The firm reported February median home sales prices were down 13% in Los Angeles County from a year ago, while Orange County showed a 16% decline in February from a year earlier.
The March median home sales price for Southern California, including the Inland Empire, Ventura County and San Diego, was down 20% from its peak, to $385,000, DataQuick said this month.
peter.hong@latimes.com
