Government Reports U.S. Monthly House Price Index Declines 0.2 Percent in February

---

According to the Washington DC-based Federal Housing Finance Agency's (FHFA), monthly House Price Index, U.S. house prices fell 0.2 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from January to February. The previously reported 0.6 percent decline in January was unchanged. For the 12 months ending in February, U.S. prices fell 3.4 percent. The U.S. index is 13.3 percent below its April 2007 peak.

The FHFA monthly index is calculated using purchase prices of houses backing mortgages that have been sold to or guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. For the nine Census Divisions, seasonally adjusted monthly price changes from January to February ranged from -1.7 percent in the South Atlantic Division to +1.9 percent in the Middle Atlantic Division.

---