Existing Home Sales Double Dip: Inventory Increases Most in 20 Years

03-23-2010 • ZeroHedge.com

The double dip in housing is getting worse by the month. After hitting a nearly 6.6 million in existing home sales in late 2009, the number has now plunged to 5.02 million, a decline of 0.9% sequentially, and a major drop from the artificially induced peak.Sales for single-family homes were down and were up for condos and co-ops, indicating a preference for smaller, cheaper units among a population concerned with record unemployment and expiring homebuyer taxes. The number came on top of expectations of 4.98 million, with the range being from 4.75 million to 5.2 million units. Sales in the Northeast and Midwast improved slightly, even as sales in the South and recently bubble West declined. Yet the biggest stunner was the months of supply on market which jumped by a 20 year high, from 7.8 months to 8.6 months.