Stocks recover from housing blues - CNNMoney.com -- Stocks finished higher Wednesday after spending most of the day in the red, following another round of dismal housing news.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 20 points, or 0.2%, the S&P 500 rose 3 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 18 points, or 0.8%.

Stocks sold off sharply immediately after the housing data but managed to recoup some losses as homebuilding and housing material stocks crept higher.

New home sales drop 12.4% to record low - CNNMoney.com -- New home sales unexpectedly fell in July to the lowest level on record as the housing market continued to suffer from the end of the homebuyer tax credit boost.

New home sales dropped 12.4% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 276,000 last month, down from a downwardly revised 315,000 in June, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday. Sales year-over-year fell 32.4%. Commerce started tracking new home sales in 1963.

Sales were forecast to tick higher to an annual rate of 334,000 in July, according to a consensus estimate of economists surveyed by Briefing.com.

Plunging home sales could sink recovery - CNNMoney.com -- With home sales plunging to their lowest level in 15 years, economists warn that a double-dip in housing prices is just around the corner, threatening to further slow the overall recovery.

Existing home sales sank 27.2% in July, twice as much as analysts expected, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.83 million units. Much of that drop is attributed to the end of the $8,000 homebuyer tax credit.

That credit brought buyers out in droves, as they tried to sign home contracts before the April 30 deadline. Now, two months later, sales are 34% below April's tax incentive-induced peak.

The sales pace of all homes -- single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops -- is at the lowest since NAR began tracking the figure in 1999. Sales of single-family homes, which account for a bulk of the transactions, are at the lowest level since May 1995.

Inventory has also continued to climb, rising 2.5% to 3.98 million existing homes for sale. That represents a 12.5-month supply at the current sales pace, the highest since October 1982 when it stood at 13.8 months. A six-month of supply is considered normal.

Stocks lose big on home sales shock - CNNMoney.com -- U.S. stocks closed sharply lower Tuesday after a report showing a worse-than-expected plunge in existing home sales reignited fears about an economic slowdown.

The Dow Jones industrial average sank 134 points, or 1.3%, the S&P 500 lost 15 points, or 1.5%, and the Nasdaq composite fell 36 points, or 1.7%.

"Economic reports have been close to disastrous," said Joseph Saluzzi, co-head of equity trading at Themis Trading. "People are very concerned about the economy and everyone is talking about a double-dip [recession] at this point."

Disappointing economic news has sent investors flocking to the perceived safety of Treasurys and the Japanese yen, which hit a 15-year high against the dollar early Tuesday.

Stocks slump at the close - CNNMoney.com -- U.S. stocks ended a choppy day of trading lower Monday, as a dismal economic outlook overshadowed earlier optimism fueled by takeover talk.

After starting the session sharply higher and seesawing throughout the day, the Dow Jones industrial average lost 39 points, or 0.4%, the S&P 500 ticked down 4 points, or 0.4%, and the Nasdaq composite dropped 20 points, or 0.9%.

It's been a rocky ride for Wall Street over the past couple of weeks, as investors have shifted their focus between positive company news and gloomy economic readings.

Disappointing reports on jobs, manufacturing and economic activity battered confidence last week, dragging the Dow and S&P lower for the second straight week.

Monthly Housing Scorecard: Administration Touts Increased Price Stabilization - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury have released the August edition of the Obama Administration's Housing Scorecard. The August 2010 Scorecard was marked primarily by how few changes were evidenced since the July Report.

Housing prices have been relatively flat on a month to month basis since January 2009 when they ended their 30 month decline.  Historic low interest rates continued to promote home affordability and refinancing options for the nation's families, but few people were taking advantage of it either to purchase a home or refinance their existing one. 

Overall, the market remains fragile with foreclosure starts showing a slight increase and serious delinquencies continuing to work through the pipeline. MND has described the housing market as "stagnant".