Home Prices in U.S. Probably Posted Biggest Decline in Year

Residential real-estate prices dropped in the 12 months to December by the most in a year, a sign the U.S. housing market is struggling even as the rest of the economy recovers, economists said before a report today.

The S&P/Case-Shiller index of home values in 20 cities fell 2.4 percent, the biggest year-over-year decrease since December 2009, according to the median forecast of 19 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. Another report may show consumer confidence fell this month from the highest level in almost three years.