Single-family home prices drop in R.I.

PROVIDENCE—The median sales price for single-family homes in Rhode Island plummeted by almost 20 percent in November.

The Warren Group, which provides data on New England real estate markets, said Monday the drop was the steepest percentage decline in year-to-year monthly prices since the group started tracking the state’s sales in 1989.

The median price fell from $255,000 in November 2007 to $205,000 last November, marking the sixth straight month that median home prices in Rhode Island have seen double-digit declines.

The group said in a statement that homeowners have been pushed to lower asking prices because buyers are unnerved by the financial meltdown, high unemployment numbers and lowered values in the besieged stock market.

The group said home prices might not rise again until consumer confidence recovers.