CoreLogic Records First Drop in Home Prices in Four Months

Home prices in the U.S. slipped 0.4 percent between July and August, ""CoreLogic"":http://www.corelogic reported Thursday. It marks the first time in four months the company's index has recorded a decline.

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Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic points out that although the calendar says August, it traditionally marks the beginning of fall for the housing market and activity begins to slow down as winter approaches.

In light of that, Fleming says the slight month-over-month decline was predictable, particularly given the renewed concerns over a double-dip recession, high negative equity, and the persistent levels of shadow inventory.

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Based on CoreLogic’s assessment, national home prices were down 4.4 percent in August when compared to a year earlier. This follows a decline of 4.8 percent in July 2011 compared to July 2010.

That figure includes distressed sales, such as short sales and REO transactions. Take the distress factor out, and prices are down by just 0.7 percent year-over-year.

According to Fleming, “The continued bright spot is the non-distressed segment of the market, which is only marginally lower than a year ago and continues to exhibit relative strength.”

Including distressed transactions, the peak-to-current change in CoreLogic’s national price index was -30.5 percent. That’s tracking price movement from April 2006 to August 2011.

Excluding distressed transactions, the peak-to-current change for the same period was -21.0 percent.

CoreLogic says the five states with the highest home price appreciation in August were: West Virginia (+8.6%), Wyoming (+3.6%), North Dakota (+3.5%), New York (+3.2%), and Alaska (+2.2%).

The five states with the greatest depreciation were: Nevada (-12.4%), Arizona (-10.7%), Illinois (-9.6%), Minnesota (-7.8%), and Georgia (-7.2%).