House prices fell in most US markets last quarter

Home prices fall in more than half of nation's biggest markets

"NEW YORK: Prices for single-family homes fell in more than half of the 149 biggest U.S. metropolitan areas in the last three months of 2006, according to data released by a trade group for real estate agents."

"The figures from the National Association of Realtors on Thursday show that the housing market weakened noticeably in many parts of the country at the end of last year."

"You have two kinds of weakness here," said Jan Hatzius, an economist at Goldman Sachs. "There is the traditional economic-driven weakness in parts of the Midwest, and there is the bubble-bursting weakness. That's what is bringing down the national home price appreciation rate."