In a report released by Zillow. com, a real-estate Web site on Wednesday, it was stated that one in five housing markets is entering double dip of home price declines in late 2009. According to the site's fourth quarter real-estate market report, in 29 out of 143 markets tracked by the site, prices lessened again in the second part of last year.

In a news release, Stan Humphries, Zillow's chief economist said, "While we have seen strong stabilization in home values during 2009, there are clear signs that they will turn more negative in the near-term. What we saw in mid-2009 was a brief respite from a larger market correction that has not yet run its course".

Percentage of single-family homes with mortgages was also found rising in negative equity in negative to 21.4% in the fourth quarter, and 23% were underwater in the second quarter. The home values dipped 5% in the fourth quarter nationwide as compared to the fourth quarter. For all U. S. home sales in December, foreclosure resale remained high, up 20.3%.

Humphries added, "Markets that see a "double dip" in values before reaching a bottom won't see a return to the magnitude of depreciation seen earlier. Home values are likely to bounce along the bottom with real appreciation remaining negligible for some time. The prevalence of markets in or near a double-dip situation shows that we are not yet at the bottom, in terms of home values. It is important to note, however, that the arrival of the bottom does not mean that recovery is around the corner".