Chicago Area Home Prices Fall

In February, Chicago-area home prices dropped for the sixth straight month according to new data released this week by S&P/Case-Shiller.

The data reflects single-family home prices fell 0.8 percent in February compared with January.

However, Chicago area home sales prices were up 5.1 percent compared with Feb. 2012, which is the second smallest year-to-year increase after New York in a 20-city index provided by S&P/Case-Shiller, reported Crain's Chicago Business.

“Home prices continue to show solid increases across all 20 cities,” said David M. Blitzer, chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices, in a statement. “The 10- and 20-city composites recorded their highest annual growth rates since May 2006.”

Local prices are down about 34 percent from their peak in September 2006, reported Crain's.

In March, Patch reported that home sale prices in Western Springs were down 0.3 percent in 2012 compared with 2011.