Meltdown 101: Where do home prices really stand?

Is the historic U.S. housing market crash close to being over, or is the end still far, far away? While sales finally seem to be stabilizing, prices are still are likely to keep sinking well into next year and maybe longer. Prices have been cut in half in Las Vegas and Phoenix, according to one popular home price measurement. But statistics like these mask the many complexities involved in trying to measure U.S. home prices. Every home price gauge captures a somewhat different slice of the housing market, even when they all depict the same general trend. Also, all real estate is local — some neighborhoods have largely escaped the housing bust, and price declines can vary sharply within a single metro area. In many parts of the country, faraway suburbs, where many buyers moved into new subdivisions and stretched to qualify for mortgages, have been hit harder than established, wealthy enclaves.

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