Shiller Time

The pace at which home prices are falling has slowed, according to the latest S&P Case-Shiller home-price index, which notes the Los Angeles area (including Orange Country) fell 21 percent from the previous year. By comparison, in January, area prices fell 25 percent from a year earlier, according to the Los Angeles Times. And the paper takes a closer look at the each segment of the local market, reporting that "the lowest-priced third of homes sold in April is down 54% in price from its peak, according to Case-Shiller; the middle third was down 42%; and the most-expensive third of homes sold was down 31%." Meanwhile, check out the cities showing the worst declines: Phoenix (35%), Las Vegas (32%) and San Francisco (28%). And like a lot of people, the Wall Street Journal is wondering what the mid to high segment of the real estate market will do next: "If price declines accelerate for the mid-to-upper end of the housing market, then that could generate enough large declines in values—even among a small segment of the overall housing market—to push the index lower still." [WSJ]