One in four homeowners see more price drops: poll

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Nearly one in four U.S. homeowners expect home prices to fall further in the coming year, as the protracted housing slowdown weighs on consumers' outlook, according to a poll released on Friday.

Twenty-four percent of homeowners polled this month said they anticipated a drop in home prices, up from 21 percent in September, according to the data from Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers.

"There is no evidence that the deepening slump in home prices would end anytime soon," Richard Curtin, director of the Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers, said in a statement.

Among homeowners polled in October, 29 percent reported their home value fell during the past year, a record high, compared with 26 percent in September.

Falling home values have slashed household wealth and cash-out refinancings and led to a spike in mortgage defaults and foreclosures, Curtin said.

The fallout of the persistent housing problem has spread to other areas of the economy: weaker retail spending, lower corporate profits and tax receipts, Curtin said.

"Lower property values may spark higher property tax rates to finance the current services provided by local governments, causing additional declines in disposable incomes," he said.