S&P: U.S. home price index falls to double-dip in March

Source: Reuters

U.S. single-family home prices dropped into double-dip territory in March as the housing market remained bogged down by inventory and weak demand, a closely watched survey said Tuesday.

The S&P/Case Shiller composite index of 20 metropolitan areas declined 0.2 percent in March from February on a seasonally adjusted basis, in line with economists' expectations.

The price index was below the low seen in April 2009 during the financial crisis. The glut of houses for sale, foreclosures, tight credit and weak demand have kept the housing market on the ropes even as other areas of the economy start to recover.

The 20-city composite index was at 138.16, falling below the 2009 low of 139.26.

Read more: http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/breaking/chibrkbus-sp-us-home-price-index-falls-to-doubledip-in-march-20110531,0,3480236.story

Thereby making families homeless, destroying neighborhoods, dumping foreclosures on the market further exacerbating the situation, and then pushing foreclosures to other than savvy buyers as their best money-saving option when they're usually in such condition as to need thousands in repairs and upgrades to make them livable.

This is possibly the worst course of action to take. It's as if they're destroying the housing market on purpose. Duh. They have and are destroying the housing market on purpose.

It makes me wonder what they have planned for all the vacant homes...huge golf courses? Larger prisons? The deviant possibilities of their greedy mindset is mind boggling.

Reporting from North Las Vegas, Nev.—
Charles Mills can barely afford to stay here. But he also can't afford to move.

That's why the 44-year-old heavy-equipment operator was preparing to leave his wife and young daughter here and go where he could find work — the Oklahoma oil fields. Mills has a mortgage to pay, even if its size pains him.

He purchased his house in 2006 for $308,500. Current value: $105,797.

"We talked about it: What can we do with the house?" Mills said. "Nobody's going to buy it. Nobody's going to rent it. If we walk away, my credit's shot. We're stuck."

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-underwater-homeowners-20110531,0,6176564.story

His credit is already probably shot, might as well get it all out now so it all goes away in 7 yrs.

Until then, rent.

No money, no house shopping.

What part of this does the White House not understand?

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/jared-bernstein-gives-us-glimpse-of.html

as long as chase and citibank are ok, that's all that matters.