Home prices retreat in 8 of 20 cities

NEW YORK, May 29 (UPI) -- U.S. home prices fell in eight of 20 cities in the closely-watched monthly Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller report in March, the firm said.

A month earlier, in February, prices fell in 16 of 20 cities. The index for March shows declines in half that number, a silver lining in a report that shows both the 10-city and 20-city listings and five individual cities at post-economic crisis lows.

The 10-city composite index came in at 146.61, the lowest it has been since April 2003. The 20-city composite index registered 134.1 in March, its lowest reading since October 2002.

In March, prices fell in Atlanta, Chicago, Boston, Detroit, Minneapolis, Las Vegas, New York and Portland, Ore., although the index for Las Vegas dropped marginally, down to 89.87 from 89.89.

"While there has been improvement in some regions, housing prices have not turned," said David Blitzer, Chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Indices.

"The National Composite fell by 2 percent in the first quarter alone, and is down 35.1 percent from its 2nd quarter 2006 peak," he said.

However, seven cities -- Charlotte, N.C., Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Miami, Minneapolis and Phoenix -- registered price gains on an annual basis.