California home prices' biggest fall in 14 months

By JON LANSNER

California home prices fell in January on a year-over-year basis for the fourth consecutive month, according to real estate tracker CoreLogic's math.
CoreLogic's latest reports shows ..

•Statewide values were down 4.25 percent for the year ended January vs. a 2.6 percent year-to-year drop in the previous month.
•The last time California prices were falling at a faster rate was 14 months earlier — November 2009, when year-to-year depreciation ran 4.78 percent.
•Statewide prices had rsien by the math from January through September 2010.
•States with the highest appreciation? West Virginia (+5.5 percent), North Dakota (+3.3 percent), New York (+1.9 percent), Hawaii (+0.7 percent) and Wyoming (+0.2 percent).
•Worst? Idaho (-15.7 percent), Alabama (-12.1 percent), Arizona (-11 percent), Oregon (-9.9 percent) and Utah (-9.8 percent).
•National index declined on year-to-year basis for the sixth month in a row: off 5.7 percent vs. January 2010. Declined 4.7 percent in year ended in December.
•Orange County? Prices off 3.25 percent in year ended January 2011 vs. dip of 4.29 percent in previous month.

Mark Fleming, chief economist with CoreLogic, said, "A number of factors continue to dampen any recovery in the housing market. Negative equity, which limits the mobility of homeowners, weak demand and the overhang of shadow inventory all continue to exert downward pressure on housing prices. We are looking out for renewed demand in the coming months as the spring buying season gets underway to hopefully reduce the downward pressure."

URL to original article: http://www.ocregister.com/articles/home-292085-corelogic-prices.html

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