If the health of the economy is judged by home prices then, according to recent reports, things aren't going well in metro Detroit.

A California-based real estate asset valuation company says home prices in metro Detroit dropped by more than 9 percent in the third quarter of this year. That compares to the national rate of a 5 percent decrease.

A spokesman for Clear Capital says while home prices are down now, this follows a period which saw slight increases under the federal first time home buyer tax credit, which has since expired.

The experts say because of the increases of repossessed homes, prices could drop even more if the economy has a set back.