The National Association of Realtors reported that existing home sales plunged 27.2 percent in July after the homebuyer tax credit ended in June, roughly double the decline that analysts were expecting. This is more confirmation that the housing market is in serious trouble, a double-dip decline in home prices now even more likely to come in the months ahead.
Home sales fell from a downwardly revised annual rate of 5.26 million units in June to just 3.83 million in July, the lowest level since 1995. Inventory rose sharply, the months of supply metric soaring from an upwardly revised 8.9 months to 12.5 months, the highest level in 11 years. All things considered, markets are taking the news fairly well, so far…
