S&P/Case-Shiller index shows home prices still falling

One of the newest indicators of home prices is the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index. The index uses data from sales of individual properties. It attempts to improve on some of the other price measures out there, including the median price figures reported by the National Association of Realtors.

Anyway, in November, prices fell from a month earlier in 17 of the 20 U.S. metropolitan areas tracked. The U.S. composite index showed a -0.41% drop. That's the fourth monthly decline in a row, following changes of -0.24% in October, -0.2% in September, and -0.18% in August. On a year-over-year basis, the index was still up 1.71%. However, the rate of appreciation has been slowing month-in and month-out and the gain is the smallest the group has on record (its index dates back to January 2001).