TEN CITIES WHERE HOME PRICES HAVE PLUMMETED

Naples Marco Island Everglades CVB

It's no surprise that the cities that saw the sharpest real estate price hikes before 2007 are now seeing the steepest dips in median home values. Tourist and second-home hot spots have been hit especially hard. Since the housing bubble burst, these cities have seen a big increase in home sales, largely in the foreclosure and short-sale markets.
The influx of distressed homes on the market has lured many first-time buyers, but it's also further dragged down median prices, which dipped almost 20% nationwide in 2008. Keep in mind, though, that if you've always wanted to own prime real estate in one of these metro areas, now's the time to shop. Take a look at the ten cities that saw the sharpest drops in home values last year. Change in median home price is from the fourth quarter of 2007 to the fourth quarter of 2008, which is the most recent data from Fiserv Lending Solutions, a home-price research company. The slide show navigation begins to the right.

By Louis Jones

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TEN CITIES WHERE HOME PRICES HAVE PLUMMETED

PHOENIX, ARIZONA

Greater Phoenix Convention and Visitors Bureau

Metro area population: 4,179,427
Median home price: $169,000
12-month change in home value: -33.7%
Home value vs. national median ($180,200): -6%
April 2009 unemployment rate: 6.8%
Phoenix's boom-and-bust housing market has been slammed by the bursting of the real estate bubble but is beginning to show signs of recovery. Availability of foreclosures and short sales has pushed sales and pending sales to record highs. And after 15 months of declining home values, home prices in suburban Phoenix began to rise in early May.

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PHOENIX, ARIZONA

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TEN CITIES WHERE HOME PRICES HAVE PLUMMETED

RIVERSIDE, CALIFORNIA

Riverside Convention and Visitors Bureau

Metro area population: 4,081,371
Median home price: $215,000
12-month change in home value: -33.1%
Home value vs. national median ($180,200): +19%
April 2009 unemployment rate: 12.6%
California's Inland Empire, located east of Los Angeles, hasn't been socked as hard as the Central Valley, but its home prices have still seen a significant decline. Between the fourth quarter of 2005 and the fourth quarter of 2008, the median home price in Riverside, Cal. dropped an annualized 49%.

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RIVERSIDE, CALIFORNIA

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TEN CITIES WHERE HOME PRICES HAVE PLUMMETED

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA

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Metro area population: 1,836,333
Median home price: $212,000
12-month change in home value: -32.9%
Home value vs. national median ($180,200): +18%
April 2009 unemployment rate: 10.4%
Few markets have been more affected by the subprime-mortgage debacle than the Las Vegas metro area. The city's economy, centered on tourism, has also been throttled, and now foreclosures and short sales abound -- the number of real estate owned (REO) homes on the market has more than doubled from a year ago.

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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA

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TEN CITIES WHERE HOME PRICES HAVE PLUMMETED

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA

Oakland Convention and Visitors Bureau

Metro area population: 4,203,898
Median home price: $340,000
12-month change in home value: -32.3%
Home value vs. national median ($180,200): +88%
April 2009 unemployment rate: 9.3%
Home values have held fairly steady in high-income suburbs, such as Rockridge but have seen gigantic dips in other parts of the Oakland metro area. While April home sales more than doubled since last year, more than 75% of sales in the first quarter of 2009 were of distressed homes.

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OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA

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TEN CITIES WHERE HOME PRICES HAVE PLUMMETED

NAPLES, FLORIDA

Naples Marco Island Everglades CVB

Metro area population: 315,839
Median home price: $257,000
12-month change in home value: -30.6%
Home value vs. national median ($180,200): +43%
April 2009 unemployment rate: 9.2%
Largely a second-home market, Naples has seen its median home values plummet as a result of the distressed home market and a lack of demand. The city's economy, largely fueled by construction, has also taken a beating, as the homebuilding industry has nearly come to a standstill. However, homes not sold as foreclosures or short sales are beginning to slowly rise in value again.

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NAPLES, FLORIDA

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TEN CITIES WHERE HOME PRICES HAVE PLUMMETED

SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA

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Metro area population: 1,803,549
Median home price: $487,000
12-month change in home value: -30.4%
Home value vs. national median ($180,200): +170%
Unemployment: 10.9%
The usual suspects -- subprime lending and high unemployment -- have taken their toll on the San Jose housing market. But the decrease in home values has lured many first-time home buyers to the market. Previously, less than 20% of people in the San Jose area could purchase a home with their income. Now, 50% can.

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SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA

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TEN CITIES WHERE HOME PRICES HAVE PLUMMETED

SANTA ROSA, CALIFORNIA

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Metro area population: 464,435
Median home price: $330,000
12-month change in home value: -29.6%
Home value vs. national median ($180,200): +83%
Unemployment: 9.4%
An increase in sales of distressed homes has pulled down median home values in Santa Rosa. In April 2006, 10% of homes sold in the area went for $1 million or more. In April 2009, only 1% sold for that much. Homes that sold for less than $500,000 went from 20% of the market to 90% of the market over the same period of time.

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SANTA ROSA, CALIFORNIA

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TEN CITIES WHERE HOME PRICES HAVE PLUMMETED

SANTA CRUZ, CALIFORNIA

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Metro area population: 251,747
Median home price: $477,000
12-month change in home value: -28.6%
Home value vs. national median ($180,200): +165%
Unemployment: 12%

Only four cities in the country have higher home prices than Surf City, as Santa Cruz is often called. Located 30 miles south of San Jose, Santa Cruz's main industries include agriculture, tourism and technology, but losses in each sector have pushed the unemployment rate up.

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More Great Slide Shows:
Ten Cities for Rising Home Prices
Bargains on the Fairway
Foreclosure Deals Across the States
8 Remodeling Projects That Pay Back

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SANTA CRUZ, CALIFORNIA

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