Spanish Q4 house prices fall 4.3 pct yr/yr

MADRID, March 16 (Reuters) - Spanish house prices fell 4.3 percent in the fourth quarter compared to a year earlier after a 7 percent slide in the July to September period, the National Statistics Institute data showed on Tuesday.

The fourth quarter drop was the seventh consecutive decrease and compares to a record 7.7 percent drop in the second quarter.

Fourth quarter house prices fell 0.4 percent on a quarter-on-quarter basis compared with a 0.9 percent drop in the third quarter, official data showed.

The price of new homes fell 5.1 percent year-on-year, while existing house prices fell 3.5 percent, the INE reported. (Reporting by Paul Day; Editing by Jonathan Gleave)