If you bought a long time ago, your house has probably appreciated in value, despite the recent decline. If you bought a year ago, your house is probably worth less than what you paid for it. Where is the dividing line between gains and losses? Using the Case Schiller indexes, I found the dividing line for the 20 largest metropolitan areas. (Remember, this is an average. You may have overpaid terribly, or failed to maintain your house, or be just plain unlucky.)
| Detroit | April-99 |
| Cleveland | May-02 |
| Minneapolis | March-03 |
| San Diego | October-03 |
| Boston | January-04 |
| San Francisco | April-04 |
| Denver | April-04 |
| Las Vegas | April-04 |
| Los Angeles | May-04 |
| Washington | October-04 |
| Miami | November-04 |
| Tampa | December-04 |
| Atlanta | January-05 |
| Chicago | January-05 |
| Phoenix | March-05 |
| New York | March-05 |
| Dallas | June-05 |
| Portland | April-06 |
| Seattle | June-06 |
| Charlotte | March-07 |