The NAR has the existing home sales numbers out. "Total existing-home sales; including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, declined 2.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate1 of 6.56 million units in January from an upwardly revised pace of 6.75 million in December. Sales were 5.2 percent below the 6.92 million-unit level in January 2005."

"David Lereah said sales are tracking the trend in the association’s Pending Home Sales Index. 'Our leading indicator, based on pending sales, has been trending down since hitting a record last August,' he said. 'In the wake of interest rates peaking in November, I expect we are in a bit of a trough that may be followed by a modest rise and then a general plateau in the level of sales activity.'"

"Total housing inventory levels rose 2.4 percent at the end of January to 2.91 million existing homes available for sale. Single-family home sales dipped 1.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.77 million in January from an upwardly revised 5.86 million in December, and were 4.8 percent lower than the 6.06 million-unit pace in January 2005."

"Total existing-home sales in the West declined 3.5 percent to a pace of 1.37 million in January, and were 14.4 percent below January 2005. In the Midwest, existing-home sales dropped 7.7 percent to an annual pace of 1.44 million in January, and were 3.4 percent below a year earlier. Existing-home sales in the Northeast fell 10.0 percent to annual sales rate of 990,000 units in January, and were 13.2 percent lower than January 2005."

"The decline in total sales was driven by a 1.5 percent decline in the pace of single-family sales and a 10.6 percent drop in condo sales in January."

Some housing bubble news from homebuilders on Wall Street. "Dominion Homes, Inc. today announced financial results for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2005. The Company's year-end backlog for 2005 was the lowest in several years and reflects a slowdown in home sales that began during the second quarter of 2004 and continued throughout 2005. The Company's land position..became disproportionate to the lower demand for its homes experienced during 2004 and 2005. As a result, the Company began to aggressively reduce its land position during 2005."

"The Company's CEO, Douglas G. Borror, commented 'We are offering selective discounts on our homes to improve sales that are expected to reduce our gross margin for the year. Due to our low backlog at the end of 2005 and the anticipated reduction in our gross margin, we do not expect to be profitable for the first quarter of 2006.'"

And from Standard Pacific. "New home orders companywide for the year-to-date period ended February 26, 2006, excluding joint ventures, were down 13% from the level achieved a year ago. This slowing of sales activity is particularly evident in markets which have experienced significant price increases and investor-driven demand in recent years, such as California and Florida."

"New home orders were down 24% year over year in Southern California on a 29% increase in active selling communities. The lower level of sales activity in Southern California was due to: (1) a softening in buyer demand, most notably in San Diego and, to a lesser degree, in Orange County, (2) reduced product availability, particularly in our Los Angeles division, and (3) an increase in the cancellation rate."

"In Northern California, new home sales were down 60% on a 12% lower active community count. The Company saw a noticeable slowing of demand in Sacramento in the second half of 2005. New home orders were down 37% in Florida on a 12% decrease in community count. A number of factors contributed to the year-over-year decrease in Florida order activity: (1) reduced product availability in certain divisions, particularly in Orlando and Jacksonville, (2) a softening in buyer demand, most notably in South Florida and Southwest Florida, (3) continued intentional slowing of orders to better align production and sales, particularly in Tampa, and (4) a modest increase in the cancellation rate."

"The Company's cancellation rate for the year-to-date period ended February 26, 2006 was 26%, up from the year earlier rate of 18%.

"Nearly half the new homes put up by builders aren't being sold as expected, the report shows. At the current sales pace, there were enough new homes on the market to satisfy demand for the next 5.2 months, the fattest inventory glut since November 1996."