U.S. home prices post 16-year steep drop

New York -- U.S. home prices posted their steepest drop in 16 years, as 16 of 20 metropolitan areas saw growth rates fall, a Standard & Poor's report said Tuesday.

The S&P/Case-Shiller home price index's10-city composite index fell 4.5 percent in July from a year earlier, while the broader 20-city composite index was down 3.9 percent.

"The further deceleration in prices is still apparent across the majority of regions," MacroMarkets LLC Chief Economist Robert Shiller said.

While prices rose in Atlanta, Charlotte, Dallas, Portland and Seattle, their growth slowed in the past year, S&P said.

Atlanta and Dallas are getting closer to registering year-over-year declines in home prices, it said.

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