San Diego Area House Prices Aren't Out of the Doldrums Yet

San Diego's housing price index dropped 1.2 percent between December and January, according to the Standard & Poor's Case-Shiller Home Price Indices released Tuesday.

Eight of the 20 housing markets surveyed did worse in the same time period. San Diego had previously been considered one of the bright spots in the monthly S&P report.

The markets were all set at 100 to start the indices in 2000, with a metropolitan area's number rising or falling in conjunction with the performance of housing prices.

San Diego's January 2011 figure in the index was 157.03, ranking fourth behind Washington, D.C., Los Angeles and New York.

Washington, D.C., was the sole market to show a monthly gain in the housing price index, at 0.1 percent.

San Diego and the nation's capital were the only metropolitan areas to
show an annual increase between January 2010 and the first month of this year.
San Diego's climb was 0.1 percent, and Washington, D.C., jumped 3.6 percent.

"Keeping with the trends set in late 2010, January brings us weakening home prices with no real hope in sight for the near future,'' said David Blitzer, chairman of S&P's Index Committee.

"These data confirm what we have seen with recent housing starts and sales reports,'' Blitzer said. "The housing market recession is not yet over, and none of the statistics are indicating any form of sustained recovery.''

The indices are back at the lows of 2009 and equal the home prices of the summer of 2003.

House prices in Atlanta, Cleveland, Detroit and Las Vegas are below their 2000 starting points, according to the report.

City News Service contributed to this report.