Home Prices Fall to 2002 Levels

The average price of a single-family home reached a new low in the first quarter and is now at 2002 levels, according to the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index.

The downturn is the most acute since prices began falling several years ago.

The index fell 4.2 percent in the first three months of 2011, after declining 3.6 percent in the fourth quarter. Analysts said the first-quarter index decreased 5.1 percent from a year earlier.