Broad Improvement in Home Prices According to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices

Broad Improvement in Home Prices According to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price
Indices

NEW YORK, Sept. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Data through July 2009, released today by
Standard & Poor's for its S&P/Case-Shiller(1) Home Price Indices, the leading
measure of U.S. home prices, show that, although still negative, the annual
rate of decline of the 10-City and 20-City Composites improved compared to
last month's reading. This marks approximately six months of improved
readings in these statistics, beginning in early 2009.

The 10-City and 20-City Composites declined 12.8% and 13.3%, respectively, in
July compared to the same month last year. All 20 metro areas also showed an
improvement in the annual rates of decline, with July's readings compared to
June.

"The rate of annual decline in home price values continues to decelerate and
we now seem to be witnessing some sustained monthly increases across many of
the markets," says David M. Blitzer, Chairman of the Index Committee at
Standard & Poor's. "The two composites and all metro areas are showing an
improvement in the annual rates of return, as seen through a moderation in
their annual declines. Looking at the monthly data, the 10-City and 20-City
Composites and 18 of the 20 metros areas increased in July. In addition, both
Composites and 13 of the MSA have had at least three consecutive months of
positive prints. These figures continue to support an indication of
stabilization in national real estate values, but we do need to be cautious in
coming months to assess whether the housing market will weather the expiration
of the Federal First-Time Buyer's Tax Credit in November, anticipated higher
unemployment rates and a possible increase in foreclosures."

As of July 2009, average home prices across the United States are at similar
levels to where they were in the autumn of 2003, From the peak in the second
quarter of 2006, the 10-City Composite is down 33.5% and the 20-City Composite
is down 32.6%.

In terms of annual declines, despite the overall improvement, all metro areas
and the two composites remain in negative territory, with 14 of the 20 metro
areas and both composites in double digits. On the positive side, Cleveland,
Dallas and Denver are nearing in on positive territory with July readings of
-1.3%, -1.6% and -2.9%, respectively. Las Vegas posted its lowest index level
in July since its peak in August of 2006, resulting in a 54.8% peak to trough
decline.

In the monthly data, only Seattle and Las Vegas showed monthly declines.
Thirteen of the 20 metro areas had three or more consecutive positive returns;
and 16 MSAs and the two composites reported monthly returns greater than
+1.0%.

The table below summarizes the results for July 2009. The S&P/Case-Shiller
Home Price Indices are revised for the 24 prior months, based on the receipt
of additional source data. More than 22 years of history for these data series
is available, and can be accessed in full by going to
www.homeprice.standardandpoors.com

July 2009 July/June June/May 1-Year
Metropolitan Area Level Change (%) Change (%) Change (%)
----------------- ----- ---------- ---------- ----------
Atlanta 110.06 2.3% 1.5% -11.8%
Boston 154.53 1.2% 2.6% -4.9%
Charlotte 121.23 0.6% 0.6% -9.0%
Chicago 128.32 2.7% 1.1% -14.2%
Cleveland 107.93 1.5% 4.2% -1.3%
Dallas 121.17 1.2% 2.7% -1.6%
Denver 128.79 1.5% 2.5% -2.9%
Detroit 70.25 1.1% -0.8% -24.6%
Las Vegas 106.08 -1.1% -2.0% -31.4%
Los Angeles 163.86 1.8% 1.1% -14.9%
Miami 147.27 1.3% 0.5% -21.2%
Minneapolis 118.68 4.6% 3.2% -17.3%
New York 173.66 0.8% 0.7% -10.3%
Phoenix 106.66 1.8% 1.1% -28.5%
Portland 150.06 1.1% 1.0% -13.9%
San Diego 150.99 2.5% 1.6% -12.3%
San Francisco 128.86 3.3% 3.8% -17.9%
Seattle 149.44 -0.1% 0.4% -15.3%
Tampa 142.84 1.4% 0.4% -18.4%
Washington 176.32 1.8% 2.2% -9.8%
Composite-10 155.85 1.7% 1.4% -12.8%
Composite-20 144.23 1.6% 1.4% -13.3%
------------ ------ --- --- -----
Source: Standard & Poor's and Fiserv
Data through July 2009

Since its launch in early 2006, the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices have
published, and the markets have followed and reported on, the non-seasonally
adjusted data set used in the headline indices. For analytical purposes,
Standard & Poor's does publish a seasonally adjusted data set covered in the
headline indices, as well as for the 17 of 20 markets with tiered price
indices and the five condo markets that are tracked.

A summary of the monthly changes using the seasonally adjusted (SA) and
non-seasonally adjusted (NSA) data can be found in the table below.

July/June Change (%) June/May Change (%)
Metropolitan
Area NSA SA NSA SA
------------ --- -- --- --
Atlanta 2.3% 1.6% 1.5% 0.6%
Boston 1.2% 0.6% 2.6% 2.0%
Charlotte 0.6% 0.1% 0.6% -0.2%
Chicago 2.7% 2.1% 1.1% 0.5%
Cleveland 1.5% 0.8% 4.2% 3.3%
Dallas 1.2% 0.6% 2.7% 2.0%
Denver 1.5% 0.6% 2.5% 1.1%
Detroit 1.1% -0.4% -0.8% -1.0%
Las Vegas -1.1% -1.9% -2.0% -2.5%
Los Angeles 1.8% 1.2% 1.1% 0.5%
Miami 1.3% 1.0% 0.5% 0.6%
Minneapolis 4.6% 3.1% 3.2% 2.1%
New York 0.8% 0.9% 0.7% 0.3%
Phoenix 1.8% 1.2% 1.1% 0.4%
Portland 1.1% 0.5% 1.0% 0.3%
San Diego 2.5% 2.0% 1.6% 0.7%
San Francisco 3.3% 2.9% 3.8% 3.2%
Seattle -0.1% -0.3% 0.4% -0.3%
Tampa 1.4% 0.5% 0.4% 0.2%
Washington 1.8% 1.6% 2.2% 1.6%
Composite-10 1.7% 1.3% 1.4% 0.9%
Composite-20 1.6% 1.2% 1.4% 0.8%
------------ --- --- --- ---
Source: Standard & Poor's and Fiserv
Data through July 2009

The S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices are published on the last Tuesday of
each month at 9:00 am ET. They are constructed to accurately track the price
path of typical single-family homes located in each metropolitan area
provided. Each index combines matched price pairs for thousands of individual
houses from the available universe of arms-length sales data. The
S&P/Case-Shiller National U.S. Home Price Index tracks the value of
single-family housing within the United States. The index is a composite of
single-family home price indices for the nine U.S. Census divisions and is
calculated quarterly. The S&P/Case-Shiller Composite of 10 Home Price Index is
a value-weighted average of the 10 original metro area indices. The
S&P/Case-Shiller Composite of 20 Home Price Index is a value-weighted average
of the 20 metro area indices. The indices have a base value of 100 in January
2000; thus, for example, a current index value of 150 translates to a 50%
appreciation rate since January 2000 for a typical home located within the
subject market.

These indices are generated and published under agreements between Standard &
Poor's and Fiserv, Inc. The S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices are produced
by Fiserv, Inc. In addition to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, Fiserv
also offers home price index sets covering thousands of zip codes, counties,
metro areas, and state markets. The indices, published by Standard & Poor's,
represent just a small subset of the broader data available through Fiserv.

About Standard & Poor's Index Services
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About Standard & Poor's
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http://www.standardandpoors.com

Case-Shiller® and Case-Shiller Indexes® are registered trademarks of Fiserv,
Inc.

SOURCE Standard & Poor's

David Blitzer, Chairman of the Index Committee, +1-212-438-3907,
david_blitzer@standardandpoors.com, or David Guarino, Communications,
+1-212-438-1471, dave_guarino@standardandpoors.com, both of Standard & Poor's