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Home Sales Probably Held Near Decade Low: U.S. Economy Preview

By Shobhana Chandra

Aug. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Home sales in the U.S. probably teetered near a 10-year low, property values dropped and consumer spending cooled, signaling the economy has taken another turn for the worse, reports this week are projected to show.

A total of 5.435 million new and existing homes were purchased in July at an annual pace, according to the median estimate of economists polled by Bloomberg News. June's 5.39 million rate was the weakest since at least 1999. Spending probably rose 0.3 percent in July, half the prior month's gain.