Metro Atlanta home prices down, again

Metro Atlanta home prices dipped further south in May even as national averages saw jumps for three consecutive months, according to a new report by online real estate search outfit Zillow.

Aggregate metro prices had plunged 6.3% year-over-year in May, pegging the area’s average home value at little more than $100,000.

A negative equity survey by the same company found last month that 1 in 2 metro Atlanta homeowners were underwater on their mortgage during the year’s first quarter. Boosting the area’s average, which ranked fourth nationally, a full 85% of Clayton County homeowners were found underwater.

- James Richardson