LONDON, England - February 22, 2011 - The S&P/Case-Shiller index, the most comprehensive barometer of the housing market, reported that prices in the United State's 20 biggest cities fell 2.4% in December compared with the same month in 2009. For the final quarter of 2010, prices were down 4.1% compared with the final three months of 2009.

A key driver of America's most recent economic boom, the country's housing market is weighed down by a glut of homes built during the sub-prime fueled construction boom. Experts also reckon that legal disputes over whether banks have followed the correct procedures when repossessing homes are delaying the ability of the market to find a bottom.

"Housing continues to drift lower and weaker," said David Blitzer, chairman of the index committee at S&P.

The final quarter saw prices in 11 of the 20 cities tracked by the index reach their lowest since prices first began to fall in 2006. The weakness in the quarter was also fed by the ending of two tax credits introduced in an effort to prop up the market.

"Going forward, weak demand, foreclosures and a glut of homes for sale should translate into at least another 5% drop in the Case-Shiller aggregate indices," said Patrick Newport, U.S. economist at IHS Global Insight.