Existing home sales tumble in March (Biggest monthly slide in nearly two decades)

Source: MSNBC

Trade group: Biggest monthly slide in nearly two decades
BREAKING NEWS

WASHINGTON - Sales of existing homes plunged in March by the largest amount in nearly two decades, reflecting bad weather and increasing problems in the subprime mortgage market, a real estate trade group reported Tuesday.

The National Association of Realtors reported that sales of existing homes fell by 8.4 percent in March, compared to February. It was the biggest one-month decline since a 12.6 percent drop in January 1989, another period of recession conditions in housing. The drop left sales in March at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.12 million units, the slowest pace since June 2003.

The steep sales decline was accompanied by an eighth straight fall in median home prices, the longest such period of falling prices on record. The median price fell to $217,000, a drop of 0.3 percent from the price a year ago.

Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18289082/

what the geography of the drop in home sales looks like.

Other than a dip a few months ago, it seems that the market is still chugging along. Prices are still in the insane territory.

but i talked to a lad yesterday who said he and his girlfriend having been finding really good reants -- he's from tahoe -- so he's not foreign to either our housing prices or rents.

Indeed rural areas are still at low sales levels, bringing state ave down, but state ave price rose with condo's up 3% year over year. Over a million dollar stuff never did drop, but sales are a bit slower, making average price of those homes that sold down a few thousand - proving averages mean little.

Including my neighbor two doors down, which is not encouraging.

This is the hottest time of year for home sales, and even in my relatively warm market, home sales are well beneath last year at this time.

Source: CNNMoney.com

Home sales: Worst drop in 18 years
Sales pace much lower than forecasts, prices show year-over-year drop for eighth straight month.
By Chris Isidore, CNNMoney.com senior writer
April 24 2007: 12:19 PM EDT


NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Home sales posted their sharpest drop in 18 years in March, a real estate group said Tuesday, as problems in the subprime mortgage sector pushed sales well below what economists had forecast.

Sales of existing homes fell 8.4 percent to an annual rate of 6.12 million in March from February's 6.68 million rate, the National Association of Realtors said. It was the biggest one-month drop since January 1989. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had forecast sales would fall to an annual rate of 6.45 million in March.

David Lereah, the Realtors' chief economist, said that bad weather earlier in the year may have cut down on sales that closed in March. But he acknowledged a hit from tighter lending standards in the subprime mortgage sector, which most likely made it more difficult for buyers without topflight credit to get financing to buy a home.

"We may be seeing some losses as a result of the subprime fallout," he said in a statement. "It's too early to measure a significant impact from tighter lending standards, which should moderately dampen activity."



Read more: http://money.cnn.com/2007/04/24/news/economy/home_sales/index.htm?cnn=yes

Inspection's today, so I suppose it could still get queered, but...

:woohoo:

:bounce:

you will be ok

duh!

After all, the Decider inherited this recession.

Jimmy Carter's fault.

I just don't get it. :wtf:

the dollar is way down against other currencies and gold

The increase in the DOW has more to do with the falling dollar, business laying off (reducing expenses - better bottom line), businesses out-sourcing (lower overhead - better bottom line). Many of the causes for the declining economy, declining dollar are also causes for investment, especially foreign investment.

Dumbnuts like Bush and his cronies, just rapin' the shit out of the USA.

the stock market is the path of least resistance

marking value isn't increasing; value of dollar is decreasing