Home prices fell in 24 of 25 metropolitan areas in November from a year earlier as the recession and tighter lending spurred record foreclosures, the New York data-tracking firm Radar Logic Inc. said Friday.
The biggest drop was in the San Francisco area, where the average price per square foot fell 36.8%, Radar Logic said.
The second-largest drop was in the Phoenix area, where the average fell 34.6%, and prices fell 32.4% in Las Vegas.
The only increase was in the Milwaukee area, where prices rose 2.4%, Radar Logic said.
"Motivated sales," including foreclosure auctions, helped increase transactions in 13 of the metropolitan areas that Radar Logic tracks.
"Motivated sales just represent houses sold at significant discounts," Michael Feder, the firm's chief executive officer, said in an interview. "You get enough buyers at those prices, you get a floor."
Four metropolitan areas — Charlotte, Denver, San Jose, and Tampa — recorded their largest price declines since Radar Logic started keeping records in 2000.
The firm's RPX Monthly Housing Market Report measures home values according to price per square foot. The data reflects a 28-day aggregate, Radar Logic said. The prices are the basis for property derivatives traded on the Residential Property Index, which allows investments based on the movement of home prices without owning property.
