Step 1 :Given that the house was initially valued at $261,000 and the value decreased by 8%, we need to find the new value of the house.
Step 2 :To find the new value, we subtract the percentage decrease from 100% (or 1 in decimal form) and then multiply the result by the old value. This gives us the formula: New value = (1 - 0.08) * Old value.
Step 3 :Substituting the given values into the formula, we get: New value = 0.92 * $261,000.
Step 4 :Calculating the above expression, we find that the new value of the house is $240,120.
Step 5 :Thus, the multiplier to give the new value after an 8% decrease is 0.92 and the new value of the house is $240,120.